Shadows of the Park
by Horses of Shadow and Night
Summary: A blind freak named Lucy lives out her days in a horrible sideshow with her best friend Ariel Fleck. Everything changes when a mysterious masked man is thrown into their cage, with talk of a wonderland he plans to build, called the 'City of Wonders'.
1. Chapter 1

It was a normal hot July day for all the freaks in Coney Island. Though to Lucy, this felt like the hottest July she'd ever felt. But Lucy could only guess the actual temperature, because she was blind. Not entirely blind though, she could see shadows, make out the dark outlines of people as they passed through the light.

But in the shaded, dark tent where the freaks were kept, the world was dark to her, and she could see nothing. "There are some new freaks coming today I heard" a young voice spoke from her side. She recognized the voice of Ariel Fleck, her best friend, who, of all people to be stuck in a cage with, she was grateful it was her.

Lucy sighed "Yes, I know. I wonder what is wrong with these ones that they are coming here to be stuck like the rest of us" she said sadly. Ariel nudged her gently "There's nothing wrong with being different" she told her gently, Lucy blinked, or at least she thought she did "At least you can see though" was all she replied with.

She listened quietly as people began to enter the tent, signaling the start of the day. She could tell from the amount of voices that there weren't that many people here, not yet anyway. She listened as Ariel shuffled around the cage and began showing her backwards leg to people. Lucy wondered what it looked like, she could only see from it's dark outline that it didn't bend the right way.

"Daddy! How much longer do we have to sit here?" Ariel called over to the cage next to theirs. Lucy couldn't help but smile as she recognized the growly voice of Ariel's father answer "A couple hours. It's not even noon yet baby". Ariel flopped into the straw beside her "That stinks, that means it's only going ot get hotter!" she moaned.

Lucy chuckled "Well at least we're in the shade of a tent, and not out in the blaring sun" she reminded her, to this Ariel only huffed "Bet there'd be a lot more to see outside this tent though" she replied. "There isn't much out there Ariel. From what I can hear, there's nothing but noise and crowds out there" Lucy told her simply.

Suddenly Ariel stood up and went over to the front of the cage as two ladies, from the sounds of their voices, came through. Ariel showed them her leg, but she could hear one of the ladies speaking to her "What's wrong with your friend dear? She looked normal to me" one of them said.

Another voice, the other lady, spoke next "No Mary, look at her eyes. They're not focused on anything. Just staring straight ahead" she remarked. She crawled forward til she could feel Ariel next to her "That's right miss, I'm blind" she told them "But if there were light I'd be able to see your shadows" she informed them.

She didn't realize how close she'd come to the front of the cage until she felt one of the ladies hand's reach through the bars of the cage and take her hand. She pressed something into it "Here you two girls go. Make sure to keep it safe" they told the two freaks. They nodded eagerly "We will" they assured before the ladies left.

Luzy scooted backwards so she was away from the front of the bars. Ariel took Lucy's hand and took whatever object had been placed there "What is it?" Luzy asked curiously. Ariel laughed "Oh it's a little toy soldier. How handsome he is!" she said, placing it back in Lucy's hands.

She wrapped her hand around it carefully, feeling it all around and finding it's face "Yes, I'm sure he looks very handsome" she murmered, almost sadly. She'd gotten used to things like this though, recieving small toys and other things from people, but not ever being able to see them.

Finally the day ended, she knew because the noise outside got louder but the noise inside the tent was much quieter. Ariel went to the side of the cage and began speaking with her father, who was in the cage next to them "Daddy did you see what we got? A toy soldier! Isn't he nice?" she asked.

"Yes he's fine" her father replied gruffly. They were cut off by their master entering the tent "Alright freaks! The new arrivals are here! May I intoduce to you Mr. Y, and Mr. De Rossi" he announced. Lucy crawled forward towards her master's voice until the hit the bars of the cage.

Her master laughed at her "Watch where you're going Lucy" he mocked. She sat and bowed her head shamefully, what must the new arrivals think of her now that she'd already made a fool of herself? She was surprised to hear the cage next to theirs open, and someone being pushed in.

She became even more surprised when their own cage was opened, and someone entered, the door slammed shut behind them "Rest up freaks! We're not earning nearly as much as we should. Tomorrow you better put on a show!" he barked.

Lucy trembled slightly and waited until she was sure he was gone before feeling on the ground and looking for Ariel. She found her friend at the side of their cage, she seemed to be looking at something interesting in her father's cage "Well Daddy, looks like you got a new cagemate!" she said cheerfully.

Her father grunted "Yes, looks like I won't be so lonely anymore" he replied to his daughter. Lucy wished there was more light in the tent so she could see him, who had been placed into his cage? Mr. Y or Mr. De Rossi? Ariel answered her question for her when she called out "Hello Mr. De Rossi! I'm Ariel!".

Quietly, they waited for an answer, but they recieved none. Lucy could hear Ariel's father move around his cage, probably to approach this Mr. De Rossi "Well?" he growled. The man, still didn't speak. Lucy jumped and hit the bars of the cage again when a voice spoke out from directly behind her "He's mute" it simply said.

So, she thought, if Mr. De Rossi was next door, that must mean that Mr. Y fellow was in their cage. Lucy suddenly felt very nervous, a man in their cage? Sometimes she felt her master was just too cruel. But maybe this man was nice, and had no bad intentions like she thought.

She turned and patted around until she found something behind her. She patted around some more andn began to move up it's front. She knew she reached his chest when she could feel his heart thumping against her palm. Suddenly a hand grabbed her wrist, and gently held it before she could reach his face "You're blind aren't you" he said simply.

Lucy sighed sadly "Yes, I'm blind" she replied. He patted her hand "Well, let me just inform you now, that you are not to touch my face" he told her, his words weren't harsh or angry sounding, but they were firm. Lucy swallowed a bit nervously "Can I just touch it once? It would help me get to know you better" she said in a small voice.

He gently took her hand and moved it up until she was touching the side of his face. He guided her hand gently and she nearly reeled back in surprise when her hand touched cold porcelin "You're wearing a mask, on the right side of your face" she commented.

Once he'd decided she'd felt enough he lowered her hand back down "Yes, and you will never feel that side of my face without the mask there" he told her gently "It's better that way". Lucy pulled her hand away from this Mr. Y fellow and crawled until she hit the bars at the other end of the cage. Feeling for her corner, she repiled the straw and curled up.

Sometimes it was hard to tell whether her eyes were open or closed, because either way there was nothing but darkness. Especially at night, when there is no light to even let her see a shadow. She felt around until she found her stuffed pony, a treasure she'd kept with her since the day her mother had given her to the freak show.

"Well it was nice meeting you Mr. Y, I will hear you in the morning" she said sleepily before closing her eyes, and falling asleep. The next morning she could feel Ariel curled up close to her, but Mr. Y was nowhere near them from what she could feel "Where is he?" Lucy whispered.

Ariel rolled over "Hm?" she asked sleepily "Where did he sleep last night?" Lucy whispered again. She could tell it was very early in the morning, and she hoped this Mr. Y fellow was still sleeping, or at least couldn't hear here. Ariel sighed "He slept in the opposide corner. Now would you let me sleep a little more? There's not even light outside the tent!" Ariel told her.

Lucy crawled over Ariel "Nah, I'd like to stay up now. You go ahead and sleep though. I'll wake you when it's close to opening. She listened as Ariel moved into where she'd just been lying "Alright" she muttered drowsily before she fell silent.

Sighing, Lucy pulled her knees up to her chest and listened to the sounds outside the tent. Seagulls chattering, ocean waves crashing against the beach, workers sweeping the boardwalk in preperation for the guests, the roller coaster being pulled up the lift hill in a test run.

This was broken by the sound of someone moving behind her. She sighed "Good Morning Mr. Y" she said quietly. She felt as he moved and sat beside her "How did you know it was me?" he asked her, she shrugged "Ariel insisted on sleeping longer. And you are quite larger than her. So when you move around it's easy to tell the different in mass" she replied, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

He seemed interested though, and continued to ask her things "Do you see anything?". She sighed "No, not here in this tent. It's too dark, but if there were some light in here. I'd be able to make out shapes and outlines of people. They look like shadows" she explained.

They sat in silence until Lucy suddenly sprung to her hands and knees, hearing the familiar noises associated with opening. She turned and crawled around the cage, her shoulder knocking into the bars of the cage and hurting her.

Finally she reached who she was looking for "Ariel! Ariel the park is opening. You gotta wake up now" she told her, shaking her friend. Ariel moaned and turned over "Tell them to wait five more minutes!" she told her, Lucy shook her harder "Do I need to tell your daddy?" she asked.

At this Ariel sprung up and ran over to the middle of the cage, plotting down next to Mr. Y "Good Morning Mr. Y!" she said quickly as she began to brush the straw off her dress and comb her fingers through her hair. Lucy huffed and crawled back over, feeling around until she found someone, Ariel, and sat down next to her.

Once Ariel was done grooming herself as best she could she began to work on her friend "You slept restlessly! There's so much straw in your hair!" she commented. Finally she finished, and just in time. Once she was seated she turned to Mr. Y "Hey! You're gonna have to take your mask off now!" she said, sounding excited.

Mr. Y however, did not share her enthusiasm "You won't be so thrilled at it when I take it off" he told her, sounding almost regretful. Lucy turned her head to where his voice had come from, so that her blank, empty eyes were at least directed at him "We're all freaks here Mr. Y, There's nothing too horrible for us" she told him.

His movements were slow and shaky as he reached up to his face. Lucy could feel Ariel trembling with anticipation as he quickly pulled the mask off his face. She gasped "Wow! It's so interesting looking! That's the neatest deformity I've ever seen. Much more interesting than mine, I mean, a backwards leg? Nothing compares to you!" she told him.

"I'm hidious!" he told them, turning away and covering his face with his hands. Lucy crawled and felt around, coming to the other side of him "Mr. Y, you're not hidious. Look around you, all us freaks, we're not hidious. We're unique, one of a kinds. And one of a kinds are the most valuable" she told him gently.

She felt his hand take hers "You speak with well meaning. But I'm a monster, and, and you're no better off than I am! You should be grateful that you're blind and cannot see my shameful ugliness!" he told her, almost harshly. This, was too much for her and she scrambled away from him, running into the bars of the cage until she found her corner, where she curled up and began to cry.

Grateful to be blind? She accepted she was blind, but to be grateful for such a thing? Why would she be grateful? If she could see she'd be the happiest girl on the face of the planet, she'd never ask for anything ever again.

Suddenly she heard Ariel's voice "That wasn't very nice! You made a poor girl cry! It's not your face that sends people running! It's your rotten personality!" she scolded him, as though he were five years old. Before any of them could say anymore the first waves of people began to enter the tent.

Lucy stayed curled up in the curner, burying her face so nobody could see her eyes. She stayed that way, simply listening to the crowds gawking and laughing at Ariel, Mr. Y, and the rest of the freaks who shared the tent with her. It was towards the end of the day, when she park was beginning to close, that she realized her mistake.

Before she could try to cover up she heard the master enter the tent "LUCY!" he yelled harshly, coming to stand in front of their cage. She lifted her head and looked at him, beginning to tremble "Y... Yes sir?" she asked, fear creeping into her little voice.

She scrambled to where his voice came from, running face first into the bars of the cage by the door. In a split second she heard the door of their cage open, and felt him grabbing the collar of her dress, yanking her out of the cage and throwing her to the ground.

"Not sick or injured are you?" he demanded. She swallowed, shaking horribly as she answered "N... No Sir!" she replied. She couldn't tell where he was, which only added to her fear. Suddenly his foot connected with her stomach and she doubled over on the dirt ground "Then WHY WEREN'T YOU SHOWING OFF?" he demanded.

He didn't give her a chance to answer, and she could hear his whip as it cracked above her head, and then began to come in contact with her little body. She cried out in pain, the other freaks were silently watching, but she knew from listening to other freaks get beaten, that they were all horrified.

After what seemed like an eternity, he grabbed her harshly by the collar and threw her back in the cage "That'll teach you to not work! Hope this is a lesson to you all! Especially you two new ones. If you don't work, you'll be whipped!". With that the master stormed out of the tent, and the freaks began to quietly murmur to each other.

"Lucy!" she heard Ariel call worriedly. Lucy couldn't move, and she could hardly breath. The smallest movements left her in agony "How bad is she?" a voice called from one end of the cage. It was their other neighbor, a small midget named Dorothy "How much blood?".

Ariel began poking her body, which caused Lucy to whimper in pain "A bit, it seems to have stopped though. Throw us a wet cloth to clean her up though" Ariel answered after a while. The fire eater, who was a couple of cages down, wet a cloth and passed it down.

Lucy cried out as she felt the cold wet cloth touch her stinging wounds. Ariel hushed her "Shhh, if you cry out too much he'll come back and we'll get in more trouble. Hold still now" she told her gently. She tried again and Lucy wriggled away, yelping in pain "Stop! It hurts!" she cried.

For the first time all evening Lucy heard Mr. Y's voice "Let me try" he said gently. Lucy trembled in fear as the cloth was pressed against her wounds. She began to wimper again, but Mr. Y's touch was gentle as he cleaned her "I'm sorry child, if I hadn't said those things before this wouldn't have happened to you" he said sadly.

Now that she'd been given a chance to calm down, and she hurt less, she spoke "It's not your fault Mr. Y, I should have known better. I knew what would happened if I didn't do what I was supposed to" she replied quietly. He stopped dabbing her wounds for a moment "You mean this has happened before?" he asked.

She nodded "Oh yes, lots of times. But our master doesn't beat us as badly as some others do. I heard at one of the other freak shows their master beat one of the freaks until he didn't cry out anymore. He bled to death in his cage" she informed him.

Lucy sighed "This is more my fault than yours Mr. Y, I get so frustrated over being blind. So when you said I should be grateful..." she trailed off as she felt him gently tip her chin so she looked up at him "I say things I don't mean when I'm angry. I've come to find that every human being does" he admitted to her.

Suddenly she began to grow drowsy and found herself leaning against Mr. Y, as he continued to speak "It's unfortunate that we, who are like normal human beings in all but appearance, are forced to be locked up in cages and treated this way. But one day..." he trailed off and Lucy realized the whole tent had grown silent, all the freaks listening intently to his words.

"One day, when I've saved enough money. I'm going to build a place, a place where everybody is equal. A wonderland, where freaks and regular people alike can be together. Everyone will be welcome, from everywhere" he spoke with such passion, that Lucy couldn't help but believe every word he said.

As she drifted off to sleep, her head resting on his lap, she heard him say "Yes I'm going to build a city, a City of Wonders".

* * *

><p><strong>My new LND story. Do you like? Dislike? Some inspiration from City of Wonders. That's like, the greatest LND fanfiction ever written. Go read that, you won't regret it!<strong>

**So, no horses yet. SURPRISE! Will there be horses later? YES! But not just any horses, there will be DIVING HORSES like from before, and, a SEEING EYE PONY! Like, a seeing eye dog but it's a pony. YES they actually exist! Look them up, they're adorable!**

**Please review, I really don't know where I'm going with this story just yet. But I'm liking the beginning I've set up here so, this story officially has POTENTIAL! YAY! Alright, so Review, and THANKS FOR READING!**


	2. Chapter 2

"Aren't you excited for the end of the season?" Ariel asked excitedly as they waited for the park to open. Tiredly, Lucy yawned "It will be nice to be able to see a little bit. The darkness is maddening" she admitted "But staying on Coney in the winter is no fun".

Mr. Y shuffled as he took his mask off and hid it under the straw "You stay on Coney in the winter?" he asked her curiously. Lucy nodded "It's too dangerous in the city for me. Don't want to get hit by anything. So, I'm perfectly content helping take care of the animals in the winter here on the island" she replied.

Ariel poked her so she turned her head towards her "How can you be content taking care of animals you can't even see? And walking through knee deep snow carrying water looks like even less fun than sitting in here all day!" she told her. Lucy smiled and closed her eyes "Yes, but there's something about touching a horse. I can't explain it, but, I feel almost normal when I'm with them".

The last day of the season didn't end soon enough for Lucy, and she bubbled with excitement as she heard the master's keys jingle and the doors of their cages being opened "Be gone with ye all! I'll see you all in June!" he called as they all rushed out of the cages.

Lucy waited for a moment before Ariel's father helped lower her to the ground. She was slightly surprised to hear Mr. Y's voice "Are you just going to leave her alone?" he asked. Ariel was limping quickly towards the exit "Yes of course! Lucy can take care of herself! She's almost 9 years old!" she told him matter of factly.

"Ariel and Lucy may think she's fine by herself, but I do worry for her. After losing Ariel's mother, it made me realize how easy an innocent life can be taken away. And with Lucy not being able to see..." Ariel's father explained.

Once they exited the tent Lucy's blank eyes got almost a spark in them "I can see you Ariel!" she called, beginning to chase after her friend. Ariel couldn't run very fast because of her leg, but Lucy couldn't run very fast because of her eyes. Eventually though, Lucy managed to catch her.

Her friend laughed "It's so strange how you can see me in the light, but if it's dim like in our tent you can't see at all!" she told her. Lucy looked around "Hey! Do you think we're tall enough to ride the roller coaster now?" she asked. Ariel giggled playfully "Oh I bet! Do I look taller?" she asked.

Lucy nodded "Yea, your outline looks taller, but just as skinny" she replied. Suddenly Ariel jumped "Oh Oh! What do Mr. Y and Mr. De Rossi's outline look like?" she asked excitedly. Lucy spun around to see three outlines following them.

The biggest, Lucy easily recognized as Ariel's father. He was talking to a man, who appeared to be dressed very nicely, but one side of his face appeared slightly out of place "Well, Mr. Y's outline looks perfectly normal besides the mask on his face, it makes the right side of his face appear bigger, puffy almost" she told them.

Mr. Y and Ariel's father stopped talking at the mention of his name. "And Mr. De Rossi looks perfectly normal to me. A little tall, but still normal. But you said he was mute right?" she asked. Ariel nodded "Yes, he has scars on his throat. You must not be able to see them".

She shook her head and looked around the rest of the area "The shadows are so complex, I almost wish I were back to being completely in the dark. The shapes confuse me" she admitted. Ariel tugged on her "Look! There's the Roller Coaster! Let's go let's go let's go!" she said, taking her friend's arm and dragging her forward.

They reached the rollercoaster and the man who ran it smiled at them "Well Well, looks like your tall enough to ride... if you have an adult with you" he said teasingly. The girls always came at the end of every season trying to get into the ride, and every year they'd been too small.

"Each of us has to have an adult, or just one adult for both of us?" Ariel asked, seeing if she could negotiate something. The man who ran the coaster crossed his arms "It only sits two people a row. You're gonna need to each have an adult" he told them.

Ariel groaned and huffed frustratedly "My daddy said he'd never go on the coaster! Never ever. He said it looks 'unsafe'" she told her. Lucy knew this, but suddenly she got an idea "What about Mr. Y and Mr. De Rossi? They're still around! We'll ask them!" she said.

The two girls ran back down to where the three men were seated on a bench, Ariel's father and Mr. Y having some sort of heated discussion "Mr. Fleck, would you please go on the coaster with us? Cause we need an adult" Lucy asked, making the most innocent face she could.

She tried not to laugh as she heard him grunt "No, absolutely not. That rollercoaster looks like it will fall down any second!" he told them. Ariel giggled "Daddy they only built it 5 years ago!" she told him. Mr. De Rossi waved his hand and pointed at the roller coaster.

"You'll go on it with us Mr. De Rossi?" she asked. He nodded his head and Ariel smiled brightly "Ok, but we need two adults" she said. They waited, both making pleading faces to Mr. Y "De Rossi will you quit making that face!" he gasped. Ariel and Lucy both turned to see Mr. De Rossi was standing over them, making an innocent face and blinking, trying to look like a girl.

Finally Mr. Y sighed "I suppose. But one ride is all I can take!" he told them. Ariel and Lucy both jumped "Yay! But who's going with who?" she asked. Mr. Y stood up "I'll take miss Lucy, I feel it would be better for her to have someone she can talk to while she can't see where she's going half the time" he announced.

Ariel took Mr. De Rossi's hand and jumped "Ok! I'll go with Mr. De Rossi then! See you later Daddy!" she called as the two girls pulled their victims onto the coaster. Lucy began to tremble with excitement as she heard the familiar clicking of the coaster as it started. She'd heard it every single morning and all day long, but never been right up riding it before.

She listened and laughed as Ariel began talking through it "Oh my! We're going up! Look how high it is! I've never been so high up before! Oh look you can see the ocean over there! And the city over there! And you can see the whole park. And..." she was cut off as the coaster reached the top.

From the outlines of the track in front of them, Lucy could see that they were indeed, quite high up, and the track was very very steep. She gripped the bar in front of her and her eyes were wide "Mr. Y?" she asked. He was very tense and stiff sitting next to her "Are you scared?" he asked her.

Lucy swallowed "Would you kill me if I said yes?" she asked timidly. Before he could answer the coaster went down the first hill, with Ariel and Lucy screaming like they'd heard people do every day all season. They'd often laughed and asked 'What are they doing out there? Ripping their limbs off?', they realized now what their screams were about.

As the coaster shot back up and around a turn Lucy was slammed into Mr. Y, which she then decided to grab onto his arm as though her life depended on it. They went down another drop, and Ariel continued to scream, Lucy noticed though that Mr. Y and Mr. De Rossi had been silent so far on the trip.

Mr. De Rossi was silent, for obvious reasons, but Lucy had to admire how brave Mr. Y was attempting to be. Though he wasn't crying out, he was stiff as a board and the arm she was holding onto was shaking as he gripped the safety bar in front of them as tight as he could. His other arm was busy holding his mask on his face.

The coaster continued to dip and turn sharply and Lucy and Ariel sighed heavily in relief as they got back to the station. The man who ran the coaster was there, laughing as the four of them stumbled off "What's the matter girls? Not what you were expecting all those years? Aren't you glad you were tall enough? Come again soon!" he called after them.

Ariel laughed once they were off "That was horrifying. Oh Mr. De Rossi you look very pale. Maybe you should sit down, you looked green on the roller coaster" she said as they reached Mr. Fleck. Who huffed as they appeared "Ladies I do believe you've broken the both of them. Mr. Y's face matches his mask. He's pale as a ghost!" he said gruffly.

Lucy and Ariel sat on the ground in front of the three men as Mr. De Rossi and Mr. Y tried to the best of their ability not to throw up their lunches. Once they were sure they were alright Ariel and Lucy stood up "More rides now!" they called. Mr. Fleck stood up "No No! Ariel we need to catch a cab into the city and get to the apartment" he told her.

She whined "But Daddy! I don't wanna go!" she told him. Mr. Fleck sighed "Say goodbye to Lucy now, you'll see her at Christmas" he growled. Ariel went over and hugged Lucy "Good Bye Lucy! I'll make sure to find you something extra special for Christmas!" she said.

Then she went over and hugged Mr. Y "Goodbye Mr. Y! You were a very nice cagemate! See you next season!" she told him. Finally she went and hugged Mr. De Rossi "Bye Bye sir, thank you for riding the ride with me and being nice to my daddy". He nodded and patted her back before she turned and took her father's hand "Goodbye!" she called one last time before they were lost in the crowds all trying to leave the park.

Lucy took a deep breath and turned to the two men "Well, I best be heading off. Gotta settle down so I'm ready for work tomorrow! Goodbye Mr. Y!" she said, giving him a hug, she then hugged Mr. De Rossi "Goodbye Mr. De Rossi. See you both next season!" she said.

With that she turned and began to walk, but after a few steps, she was already lost. The shapes and shadows of people moving, along with the outlines of buildings and everything else. She turned and found she was lost in the crowd.

Suddenly a hand grasped her shoulder and she jumped "It's only me child!" the voice connected with the hand said. She sighed in relief "Oh Mr. Y thank goodness. I thought I was gonna get jumped again" she admitted. He took her hand and began guiding her through the crowd "Jumped again?" he asked her.

She nodded "Yea, the end of the season sometimes people from the crowd think it's funny to push me down and spin me around so I get lost" she told him "I eventually find my way but...". He managed to get them out of the crowd "Well I'm quite sorry. Now where are we going?" he asked.

Lucy looked around at the shadows, but sighed "Is there a map nearby? We're going to the place where the animals are kept" she told him "Obviously I won't be able to give directions to you" she added bitterly. He yanked her hand "Don't say that. I don't have to help you" he scolded with an equally bitter tone.

Shamefully she ducked her head "Sorry sir" she said softly. After a while of him guiding her they managed to get to the barn where the animals were kept "We're here?" he asked, as he looked around. In all honesty, the place was a wreck. The horse he'd kept under the opera lived in better conditoins that these, and he lived in a basement!

Slipping her hand out of his grip she smiled "Well thank you for that. I best get ready to work now. Good Bye Mr. Y!" she said, turning and entering the barn. That was the last he saw of her until the next season. The start of the next season was brutally hot, for the middle of June.

He'd just entered the cage when the Flecks entered, looking rather well fed and dressed. That would be changed soon once the three meals a week things started again. After the Flecks came some more freaks, then Mr. De Rossi, who was clean shaven and rather handsome looking.

Finally Lucy came in, blinking in surprise as the world became dark to her once more. "Lucy! Over this way!" Ariel called to her friend. Lucy followed her voice, walking slowly until she found the bars of the cage, finding the door, she tried to climb in, but in the end Mr. Y grabbed her arms and pulled her up.

"Ariel!" Lucy said happily as her friend tackled her "Another season together! Isn't this nice! And this year we're 9 years old! And soon we'll be 10 years old! Won't that be fun? Double digits!" she babbled excitedly. Mr. Y sighed "And not long after that I'll be trapped in a cage with two hormone crazed teenage girls" he said, sounding irritated.

Lucy crawled over to him and pushed him playfully "Oh Mr. Y! Why so serious?" she asked him teasingly. Ariel flopped down in the straw "Haha, Why Mr. Y?" she giggled. Mr. Fleck's voice scolded them from the other side of the cage "Don't you start bothering that poor man Ariel you hear me?" he called.

Ariel shifted "Yes Daddy! We're not bothering him though! We're just having fun right? Cause I have so much energy. All we did all winter was sit inside and that's no fun I gotta say" she said quickly, Lucy almost having trouble following her words.

"This season is gonna be boring" Lucy stated after a moment "Doesn't sitting in a cage bore you more than sitting in the city?" she asked. Ariel began playing with the straw "I don't know, both involve sitting. I suppose I like being in the tent more cause I have our nice freak family to be with" she replied.

Blindly, Lucy began searching for her corner. Once she found it, she curled up "Well, since the season doesn't start till tomorrow, I'm gonna use today to sleep" she told them. Ariel moaned "Aw but Lucy! Aren't you excited at all? I have so much energy and Mr. Y doesn't like to play with me!" she whined.

Lucy chuckled before closing her eyes "Tell him to try and use his imagination" she said tiredly. Ariel huffed "I don't think he has one. Grown ups don't have imaginations" she stated firmly. When Lucy didn't replied she grabbed the toy soldier they'd gotten last year and placed it before Mr. Y.

"What's this?" he asked he, holding it up and examining it. Ariel crossed her arms "Lucy is tired and decided to sleep, so you have to play with me" she told him firmly. He put the toy down and looked back at her "I don't play with toys" he replied just as firmly.

Ariel picked up the toy and threw it at him, hitting him in the chest "You have to! Don't you gots imagination?" she asked. He picked up the toy and placed it on the ground calmly, though his jaw was slightly clenched as he replied "I don't HAVE to do anything".

Frustrated Ariel began to cry, which only made Mr. Y more frustrated "Stop your crying child, tears will not make me play with you" he told her firmly. Suddenly Mr. Fleck's voice came over again "Ariel baby, why are you crying?" he asked. Ariel sniffled and went over to the side of the cage "Mr. Y won't play with me daddy and Lucy fell asleep" she sniffled.

Mr. Fleck sighed "Sir would it kill you to play with my daughter? Just for a little while?" he asked in exasperation. Mr. Y picked up the toy soldier "Fine..." he grumbled. Ariel's face suddenly lit up and she went over and sat in front of Mr. Y in an instant "Glad you changed your mind" she grinned.

His eyes narrowed "You were pretenting weren't you" he asked. She nodded "Yep. Tears get Daddy everytime. But you still gotta play with me cause if you don't my daddy will beat you up. He's strong!" she said. Glancing over at the tattooed man, he swallowed and put his toy in front of the doll she had "So what's the game?" he finally sighed.

Ariel examined the toy soldier before going to the cage and digging through the straw "I've changed my mind. You like checkers?" she asked. Before he could respond she'd set up a pathetic little board, and gave Mr. Y little stones to use as pieces, her pieces were a mix of red and black, probably the only pieces of the whole game that were left.

They played, and Mr. Y easily beat her. After 7 games Ariel pouted "You couldn't let me win once?" she asked. He looked up at her "I wasn't even trying! I did try to let you win!" he told her. She looked out to where the tent flap was open, and the park was getting ready to open for the guests the next day.

"Isn't this place magical?" she asked. He looked through the tent and watched as the lights were turned on, springing the place to life outside before their eyes. Some bulbs didn't turn on, and they watched as men began to change them so they lit up just as brightly as the others.

They were both caught off guard by Lucy's voice "There's no magic for us here. If there were magic, we'd be free of our chains, and of our physical problems" she said quietly. Ariel looked outside some more "Wouldn't you like to perform out there though?" she asked.

Lucy huffed "We do perform, all the time?" she said questioningly. Ariel shook her head "Not like this, out there! With talents! Wouldn't you like to ride those horses? I would like to do fly. I bet they have that out there! They must! They have everything you can imagine out there!" she told them.

Mr. Y shook his head "They don't have everything", Ariel looked at him "How do you know? Have you been out there?" she asked him curiously. He nodded "Me and Mr. De Rossi did a little exploring out there while we were looking for jobs" he told them "We came over together on the same ship".

The girls gasped "A ship? Where are you from?" they asked. He swallowed and looked down "Paris" he replied after a moment. Lucy sighed "Ah Paris, the city of romance and poodles" she said dreamily. Ariel hit her arm playfully "It is not the city of poodles!" she argued.

Lucy crossed her arms "Yes it is!" she said as if she knew everything "Poodle romance in Paris". "There are no poodles in Paris!" Mr. Y told them "Romance, but I've never seen any poodles, or romancing poodles". Lucy laughed "Well obviously you didn't see them! They were hiding!" she told him. Ariel's eyes lit up "Like Unicorns! And Atlantis!".

Shaking his head Mr. Y went over to his corner of the cage and lay down "There's no such thing as Unicorns, or Atlantis, and I'm sure there are no poodles in Paris" he told them, closing his eyes in frustration. Ariel smiled and clapped her hands "I can already tell that these next few seasons are gonna be the greatest!".

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><p><strong>So... chapter 2 is up. REVIEW! So yea, next chapter we're gonna have the biggest ripoff ever by skipping ahead like, 9 longs years or so. Because we're already had 1 long year. So, that makes a total of TEEEEEEEN LOOOONG YEEEARS!<strong>

**Um, that's about it. I'm tired so, just review and make me happy! Thanks!**


	3. Chapter 3

Two seasons later Ariel and Lucy sat in their cage one night. Suddenly Lucy looked up "Ariel, what do stars look like?" she asked. She laughed "Stars?" she asked, Lucy nodded "Yes, stars. I've heard about them, but never seen them. Are they pretty?".

Ariel thought for a moment before nodded "Yes, they are rather pretty. During the winter I like looking at the stars. Why do you ask?". She sighed and flopped onto her back "I heard some people talking about them. They said if you wished on stars then your dreams would come true. It made me wonder, am I allowed to wish on stars too? Even though I can't see them?" she asked.

Mr. Y's voice came from the far end of the cage where he was sketching on a drawing pad he kept hidden in the straw "It shouldn't matter that you can't see the stars. They're still there" he told them. Ariel nodded "Yes I'd say so. Hey, what are you drawing Mr. Y?" she asked.

He closed the book and hid it under the straw "You'll see it all in good time. Now, what are you two going to be doing? I can get a little rest and trust you to behave yourselves correct?" he asked them sternly. They nodded "Yes Mr. Y, we can be trusted" Ariel assured him, Lucy nodded "We're too tired to cause trouble anyway".

Once he was asleep Ariel went to he door of the cage and began feeling around "What are you doing Ariel?" Lucy asked. She pulled out a bobby pin and put it in the lock, moving it until there was suddenly a click "I'm breaking out" Ariel announced quietly.

Ariel and Lucy were the only ones left awake as the swung the door open "Wait!" Lucy said. Ariel looked at her "I want to come too!" she told her. Quietly, the two girls slipped out of the cage, and Ariel guided Lucy out of the tent.

"Wow! This is amazing!" Ariel said in a whisper. Since it was night, Lucy's world was still just as dark as it was when she was in the tent "There's so many lights, and people. Let's go exploring!" Ariel said, beginning to get excited.

The two girls made their way into the park. Ariel's eyes were wide as the rollercoaster went past, people screaming in terror and excitement. The Wonder Wheel was lit up, and other smaller rides were covered in lights, making it seem as though they'd stepped into another world.

Lucy smiled "I've never heard anything like this. Where should we go first?" she asked. Ariel looked around "Well I don't know about you, but I'm starving. Let's go get some food!" she said. Ariel began dragging Lucy through the crowds, until they reached what smelled like a hotdog stand.

After begging a little, they'd managed to collect enough money to buy themselves two hotdogs. Lucy smiled as they finished "That was the best meal I've had in a long time" she told Ariel. Her friend laughed "And all I had to do was show my leg off to a few people" she told her.

They continued their exploration suddenly Lucy stopped "Ariel, what time is it?" she asked. Ariel shrugged "Um, late. Why?" she asked. Lucy listened "The park is going to close soon I think" she told her. Sure enough, they were soon caught in the rush of people trying to leave the park.

Lucy's hand slipped from Ariel's grip as they were shoved. Fear beginning to grip her, she walked blindly through the crowd. Somebody shoved her and she hit something, falling and beginning to get trampled. Quickly she scrambled foreward blindly until suddenly there was no ground under her and she slipped down, crashing onto something soft.

She could hear waves lapping close by, and smell the saltwater in the air. The sounds of the crowds were above her head and she felt around. From what she could tell, she'd fallen onto the beach and landed uninjured in the sand. Standing, she felt around blindly, but suddenly became afraid. What if she walked right into the ocean?

"ARIEL!" Lucy called, but her friend didn't answer. Taking a deep breath and gathering all her courage, she began to walk down the beach. Suddenly she ran into something and fell, rubbing her face "Ow, what the heck was that?" she asked.

"That would be a support for the boardwalk miss" a slurred voice said from beside her. She backed away from the voice "Who... are you?" she asked. The voice laughed "Someone looking for a good time. If you give me a ride I'll give you a dime? Would you like that?" he asked.

She shook her head "No No sir, I'm only 11 years old! I'd much like to just get back home now" she told him. He laughed again "Ah? To the freak show eh? Well why would you want to go back to that place. Wouldn't you like to be free?".

Lucy swallowed "Well, I would. But I like being with my friends" she told him, stepping back away from the voice. She could smell beer on his breath as he approached her, becoming afraid she turned and ran as fast as she could, only to run into another post.

The voice laughed at her, beginning to approach her. Snapping out of her daze she got around the post before taking off sprinting as fast as she could. Suddenly she felt pavement under her feet again and heard other people's voices. Not sure whether the man was still following, she went with the crowd, following them out into the streets.

After getting out on the streets, she continued to walk, skiming her hand on the buildings. After walking in circles for what felt like forever, she walked across the street blindly, and walked around more buildings. Listening so there were no cars, she continued doing this until suddenly she began to see shadows.

It was morning, she turned her head and the showdows began to get brighter and brighter. She wondered what had happened to Ariel, if she'd made it back home and had told Mr. Y and the others that she'd lost her. Once there was light, cars began to be on the streets, and Lucy realized to her shock she'd wandered quite far from the freak show.

Swallowing, she dipped into an ally, seeing some trach cans at the far end of the ally, she hid behind them and curled up. The day went on, and she listened to all the sounds of the city, watched shadows walk past the ally she was hiding in. At the end of the day, when the sun went down, her world faded to black once more.

Not sure what to do, she stayed hidden. She didn't know where she was, or which way home was, and what if she got hit by an automobile trying to cross the streets again. She huddled in the corner of the ally and sighed. After a few days of just staying put, she began to get tired, and hungry.

At night she cried softly to herself, wondering what Ariel was doing. Maybe they all thought she was dead, she sure thought she would be soon. Suddenly she remember, the conversation she'd had with Ariel and Mr. Y the night she slipped out, about stars.

"Stars, I've never made a wish before, but if you'll let me just this once, I wish that I could be found and go home with my friends" she whispered. Later in the night thunder crashed over her head and it began to pour rain. Getting soaked, she went out of the ally and began to feel for a dry spot where she could hide.

Suddenly a woman's voice shouted from a house not far from where she was standing. She was yelling at her husband to get something inside, but suddenly she noticed Lucy feeling her way down the street "Hey Tom, there's a girl standing in the middle of the street" she called at him.

His voice answered her "So? What's that got to do with anything?" he asked. Lucy ignored them and continued down the street "I think she's blind Tom, if we let her keep walking in this weather she'll get hit by a car or something" she told him.

Suddenly a hand grabbed her arm "Miss?" he asked. She began shaking a little and swallowed "Yes sir?" she asked. He spun her around so she faced him "Where are you supposed to be?" he asked her gently. She bowed her head "I'm at the freak show in Coney Island. Can you please take me there right away? I've been gone for a very long time and I must get back home" she told him.

He shook his head "You should come stay with us tonight..." she cut him off "No! Please sir I HAVE to get back right now! Please!" she begged him. Finally his wife answered from the doorway "Tom just take the poor thing back where it belongs. Can't you see she's upset?" she asked.

With a sigh, the man took her hand "Come on, that's a couple blocks from here" he told her. They began walking through the storm, the rain pelting on them and making her eyes sting slightly. Suddenly though she felt the familiar ground under her feet as they entered Coney.

"We're here, would you like me to..." she cut him off for the second time that night "No thank you sir. I can find my way from here. Thank you so much!" she told him gratefully. He patted her head "Yes well, good luck. Glad I could help". And with that, he turned and began heading back hom.

Excitedly, she began heading towards the tent. She knew where she was, and soon she felt the familiar tent flap under her fingers. Silently, she slipped into the tent, and felt her way over to her cage. She hadn't been noticed yet, but someone waws crying, it was Ariel.

From Lucy's position she could hear Ariel's cries coming from the far corner of the cage where they usually slept. Mr. Y seemed to be trying to calm her down "Ariel, she's going to be alright" he told her soothingly, but Lucy was sure he was doubting his words.

Right when she was about to enter Mr. Y began to sing, and she froze, listening. His voice, she didn't know what words he was singing but his voice, was like an angel! Ariel must have thought the same, because her cries quieted down almost instantly.

His song began to make Lucy drowsy, and she didn't want him to ever stop. But if she fell asleep outside the cage, the master would beat her for sure. He was probably already going to beat her. So, she began tapping the cage bar.

Mr. Y's song cut off as he looked up, and she heard him shuffle over to her "Lucy?" he asked in shock. Ariel's voice piped up "LUC..." Mr. Y put his hand over her mouth "Shhh. Child we don't want to wake everyone" he whispered to her.

"Mr. Y, there's a bobby pin, under the straw by the cage door. Use it to pick the lock open so I can get in" Lucy whispered frantically. He began rustling through the straw until he foudn what they were looking for, quickly he put it in the lock and the door swung open.

He pulled her up she collapsed in a heap on the cage floor. As Mr. Y pulled the door shut and locked it, Ariel hugged her best friend tightly "I can't believe it! I'm so sorry I lost you!" she said, her voice choked by tears "We shoulda never slipped out. I'm sorry" she added.

Lucy felt Mr. Y pull her over to him as he began to examine her "You seem alright. A bit bruised and there's a cut on the bridge of your nose. What happened?" he asked quietly, as to not wake the other freaks. She sighed exhaustedly "Well, me and Ariel snuck out into Coney, and then we got separated in the crowd. And someone knocked me down so I began to crawl and I fell onto the beach" she told him.

"Then I was going down the beach and I ran into the boardwalk. And this man was there! And he said he wanted to ride me or something! So I started running but I ran face first into the boardwalk again. But then I managed to get away. And I followed the crowds out onto the streets. I hid in an ally for days! Then when it rained I went looking for some place dry. And a nice man brought me back to Coney" she explained.

When her story was done she closed her eyes and began to fall, but Mr. Y caught her "I'm so tired, I hardly slept at all" she admitted softly. He hushed her "Well you're back now. Just rest" he told her, carrying her over and placing her in the straw where she usually slept.

Ariel curled up in her usual place beside her "Mr. Y?" Lucy asked, he turned "Yes?" he answered. Lucy yawned in exhaustion "Can you finish that song you were singing? It was beautiful" she murmured. He sighed and picked up the song where he'd left off, and quickly the two girls fell asleep.

The next morning the freaks all looked over and noticed Lucy curled up. "She's returned?" Mr. Fleck asked in shock "I can't believe it! Oh she's lucky!" the 'world's tallest man' said in surprise. Mr. Y nodded "Yes indeed, she showed up in the middle of the storm last night. Be quiet now, she's had a hard couple of days" he told them.

Suddenly the tent flap opened and the master entered "Well well well, if it isn't our little runaway! LUCY" he yelled. The blind girl sprang up, coughed, and then went and stood infront of him. His eyes widened slightly in surprise "I was going to beat you, but it looks like someone already beat me to it" he muttered, examining the cut on her nose.

He huffed "Well I don't care if your injured, you're working! Understand?" he asked, she nodded quickly "Yes sir, I've been looking forward to it sir" she said quickly. He grunted and left the tent, announcing opening was in an hour.

Mr. Fleck looked over at Lucy concerned "She looks quite pale. Are you alright Lucy?" he called over. She nodded "I'll be alright, I'm just tired" she told them. The day was hot and Ariel acted happily as she showed everyone her leg and told them how her best friend had finally returned.

The rest of the freaks however, including Mr. Y, all watched Lucy with watchful eyes. When the day was done Lucy fell over in the middle of the cage "I'm tired, I'm just gonna sleep here ok?" she asked. Ariel laughed "No! You gotta sleep in the corner" she said, nudging her friend.

Lucy squeezed her eyes closed "Stop Ariel! My head hurts!" she told her. Mr. Y went a put a hand on her forehead "Go lie down, you're just exhausted" he told her gently. She stammered to her feet and collapsed in her place in the corner, falling asleep quickly.

"You see what happens when you cause trouble Ariel? You hurt your best friend!" he scolded. Ariel lowered her head shamefully "I didn't mean to. I just..." he cut her off "It was selfish". Ariel gasped at him "selfish? Selfish? SELFISH?" she yelled.

She looked at him angrily "Selfish? You have the nerve to call ME selfish? YOU'RE the one who's selfish! 'Oh poor me, who has to show his face to the world and who is a hidious monster'. You think that WE don't also think those things? You think you're the only one?" she demanded.

Mr. Fleck looked at his daughter "Ariel please" he begged but she ignored him "You thing any of us WANT to be tihs way? No! We don't! You think I don't wish every day that my leg could be the way it's supposed to? You know Lucy wants to be able to see! We're ALL hidious monsters! Why do you act like you're the only one who's ever suffered any hardship in his life?".

Mr. Y glared at her "You don't know what I've done" he said darkly, and she crossed her arms "We all do things we regret. I snuck out is that not a bad thing? I nearly got my best friend killed is that bad enough for you? IS IT?" she yelled, her voice cracking as she began to cry.

"You're not the only one. We're all stuck in this hell hole together" she told him, sobbing "And what happened to the promise you made? Of a better place? You said! Well where is it?" she asked. He cleared his throat "Ariel I haven't quite gotten enough money to build it yet" he told her.

She sobbed and he took her hands gently "Ariel, I promised, you're right. And I do intend to keep my promise. But you have to make a promise yourself. And that is that you won't sneak out or cause trouble with Lucy any more" he told her. She continued sobbing "And you have to not yell at me like that again. I'm your elder, understand?" he asked.

Ariel wrapped her arms around him and cried into his chest "I'm sorry Mr. Y! I don't know what got into me!" she told him. He waited until she was done crying before pushing her off "Don't do that again either" he told her, unsure of himself. She nodded "Ok, I'm gonna go to sleep now. I'm... tired" she told him.

Sighing he nodded "Good Night Ariel" he told her. She said good night before going and falling asleep next to Ariel. Mr. Fleck looked at him from his cage "You really think you can do it?" he asked in his growly voice. Mr. Y went over to the side of the cage "Do what?" he asked.

"Build that city of wonders you've promised" he asked, Mr. De Rossi was standing behind him, his eyes seemed intent and hopeful on his answer. Finally he nodded "Yes, from what I've calculated. I'll have the funds to build it in 7 years time" he told them.

Mr. Fleck's eyes widened "7 years?" he questioned, Mr. Y nodded "Yes, only 7 more years" he told him. Mr. De Rossi bowed his head in accecptance but Mr. Fleck continued on "What about Ariel and Lucy? They'll be 18 then! They'll be full grown women!" he told him.

He nodded "I know, but even so, they'll still get their city of wonders" he told them. He looked up "And I'm going to need your help with it. I might be able to collect the money sooner, if we put all our savings together" he told them.

Mr. De Rossi nodded, his eyes lighting with excitement, Mr. Fleck took a moment, before nodded "Yes, I think that's reasonable. We'll combine our earnings and saving. And get this up before they're 16 years old. How does that sound?" he asked. Mr. Y nodded "Good, then the park shall be open in 5 years".

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><p><strong>So I wrote up this chapter because I got angry at my Les Mis story. I'd typed up the chapter and everything and then BOOM the internet dies and I lose it! I got sooo mad! Like I was ready to kill people over that one!<strong>

**Well anyway, next chapter we'll be skipping ahead about 3 years, to when Mr. Y buys up the sideshows and begins the 'City of Wonder'. Ooooooo Ahhhhhhh! Ok whatever. So, review, and um, thanks for reading.**


	4. Chapter 4

"Sixteen going on Seventeen, and still trapped in a dumb cage" Ariel said, flopping back in the straw. Lucy was sitting cross legged in the middle of the cage, looking blankly ahead and listening around her. As she got older she'd become better at pinpointing exactly where everyone was at any given time.

Like right now, Ariel was flopped in the straw a little bit to her left, while Mr. Y was sitting behind her on the right, over in the corner. From the scratches of his pen on paper, she could tell he was drawing. Over on the right in the cage next door, Mr. Fleck was curled up in the corner closest to their cage, probably watching Ariel.

Mr. De Rossi, was restless from what she could tell, as he was pacing back and forth in the cage. Suddenly Mr. Fleck shifted positions, and his rustling gave away his exact position. Where he was surprised her, he was in the corner closest to Mr. Y, maybe he was curious as to what Mr. Y was sketching?

Ariel poked her and caused her to turn her head at her "Guess what?" she asked. Lucy sighed "What Ariel?" she asked "What has you go grumpy today? Show some enthusiasm!" she said, bouncing slightly, but stopping at Mr. Y scolded her, saying she was causing him to mess up whatever he was doing.

Lucy sighed "I'm just a little tired is all" she replied. Ariel shrugged "Oh, well guess what anyway? I've decided what I want to do when I grow up! I'm going to be a trapeeze artist!" she said. "Is that so? And how do you plan to get out of here and do that?" Lucy asked "No way the master will allow you to do it".

She laughed "Lucy the promise Mr. Y made us! Remember! He promised we'd be broken free soon! What do you want to do when you get free?" she asked. Lucy thought deeply before looking up "I'd love to be able to ride a horse" she said.

This caused Ariel to gasp a little in surprise "You mean you go there every winter and you've never been on one?" she asked. She shook her head "Being blind I'd never be able to direct my horse. We'd probably end up in the ocean or something" Lucy told her, almost sadly.

The park began to open, Lucy could hear it and she turned her head to where Ariel was sitting "Maybe one day I'll get to ride one. I hope so". As visitors began to file through, Ariel noticed Mr. Y hadn't moved from his spot. He still sat in the corner drawing, his mask still on his face.

Ariel went over to him "Mr. Y! What are you doing? Do you want to get beaten by the master?" she asked. To her surprise he laughed "Dear Ariel, I need to ask a favor of you. I need you and Lucy to cause as much trouble as you can".

She gasped "Trouble? But we'll be beaten for it!" she said, Mr. Y shook his head "I promise no harm will come to you. Just do as I ask" he told her. She tried a moment to prod a little more but when it became clear he wouldn't give anything else away, she crawled over to Lucy "Lucy, we have to cause some trouble" she informed her.

Lucy laughed "I'm good on that offer Ariel, but have fun" she replied. Ariel shook her arm "No, Mr. Y told us to, come on I just thought of an idea" she said, crawling into the corner and digging out some of their old toys. She brought the back and placed some of the checker pieces in Lucy's hand "When you hear voices, throw" she instructed.

Not knowing why, but she listened. When she heard the voice of a person, she threw a piece as hard as she could at the person. Ever throw she'd hear someone yelp, after a few throws she heard Ariel laugh "Wow! You have good aim!".

At the end of the day Ariel was bubbling with excitment for the master to come. Mr. Y had something up his sleeve, maybe he would beat the master up and set them all free. Lucy on the other hand, trembled in fear at what they had done. Memories flashed in her mind at when she'd been beaten for hiding one day.

When she heard the master's voice she scampered back in fright, only to back into Mr. Y. He took her hand and patted it "Calm youself Lucy, I promised Ariel that no harm would come to you. You've nothing to fear" he told her. She swallowed and nodded as Mr. Y sat her down before she heard him walk to the front of the cage.

The master was throwing a fit "What is the meaning of this? You stupid girls! Throwing things at the guests?" she heard a whip crack "I'll teach you for such foolishness. And you, you half formed demon" she guessed he was looking at Mr. Y "You'll get yours! How dare you not show that face of yorus freak! People pay good money to see it!".

Mr. Y's voice was calm as he spoke "Actually, I have a proposition for you" he said. The master cracked his whip again and she felt Ariel press against her side and wimper "He's going to hurt Mr. Y" she whispered fearfully. Suddenly the master gasped "What? Where did you get all that cash?" he asked in amazement.

Lucy wished she could see it for herself, the master speechless? Mr. Y spoke again "I've been saving it. Would you like all this money?" he asked, the master nodded greedily "Yes of course! But wait, what are you buying?" he asked. There was a long silence before he replied "I'm buying our freedom. I'd like to buy the freakshow from you. All of it".

The master coughed "Well, all these freaks are surely worth more than that..." he trailed off as Mr. Y pulled out an entire sack of money, tossing it at the master's feet. He picked it up and started counting "Do I have a deal?" Mr. Y asked. The master nodded, tossing Mr. Y the keys.

He barked "Alright you bunch of worthless freaks. Mr. Y's ya new boss! Adios!", that was the last Lucy ever heard of him as he skipped out of the tent like a man who'd won the lottery. She listened as Mr. Y funbled with the keys and opened their cage door.

Gently he helped Ariel and Lucy down before going and unlocking the rest of the cages, helping everyone down. They gathered around him, looking up at him as though he were god "Alright my fellow freaks. This is merely part 1 of my plan. As you know, I promised these girls a wonderland. And now that I've bought the freakshow, I intend to keep my promise".

There were murmurs of amazement as he pulled out his sketchbook, turning it to the first page "This is it, Phantasma" he announced. Lucy heard Ariel gasp next to her, and Lucy wished ever so much she could see it "It's beautiful Lucy, oh it is" she told her.

She listened as Mr. Y flipped the page and Ariel gasped "Oh Mr. Y is that me?" she asked. He nodded "It is indeed you. You're act at my wonderland. You said you've wanted to fly, and do the trapeeze, well, you'll be doing those things on this hoop" he explained.

The page flipped again and Ariel gasped once again "Oh Lucy, if only you could see this one!" she said. There were more murmurs among the freaks as Mr. Y began to explain "Horses are smart creatures Lucy, and you're a smart girl. With a little training these horses should be fit for you to ride even though you can't see. Though the problem of sight, won't be a problem for you much longer".

The rest of the pictures Lucy didn't pay attention to, she couldn't see them anyway. All she could think about was horses. She was going to ride horses? Oh her dreams would come true at last! And what was more? Mr. Y said not being able to see wouldn't be a problem anymore. Could it be? She wasn't sure if it was possible, but so far Mr. Y had shown he was capable of anything.

That night Lucy got to the stables and fell asleep in the straw. Soon she'd be able to ride! A horse! Oh how excited she was, she could hardly get to sleep that night. And the next day she groomed all the horses for the sole horse performer eagerly. The performer, Emily, decided it teach her how to put the harness on today as she got ready.

"So you've been broken out of that freak show yes?" Emily asked as she guided Lucy's hands over the horse's back, helping her position the harness on him correctly. She nodded "Yes, Mr. Y bought it yesterday. I don't know how he did it but he did! And he's promised us all performances" she said excitedly.

Emily tightened the girth and nodded "Yes I know, that Mr. Y fellow asked me to work for him. He's been asking a lot of the other performers as he buys them up" she informed her. Lucy looked up at her "And what did you say? You said yes didn't you?" she asked, "Didn't you?".

There was a long pause before Emily took a deep breath "I'm afraid not Lucy. I'm leaving Coney Island". This came as a shock and Lucy gasped "Leaving?" she repeated, making sure she'd heard correctly. "Yes that's right, I'm leaving. There's a circus that has been looking for a girl to ride the horses. I've offered to go with them, because I don't like riding the diving horses" she admitted "It frightens me".

She smiled slightly "But never fear. I'm just taking my trick horses with me, so you will still have a few here" she reassured her. Lucy followed Emily out of the stall "Who?" she asked, Emily took her arm and led her down in front of a stall "Snowy, our three legged pony" she said, she went to the stalls next to the little pony "And these are our diving horses. Pete, and Blissy".

"And Roulette, Mr. Y's stallion" she told her. Lucy blinked "Mr. Y has a horse?" she asked curiously. The horse nickered and Emily rubbed his nose "Yea, when he and Mr. De Rossi first arrived in Coney they had the horse with them. Apparently he'd had it in Paris and decided to bring him. Good horse he is. A bit old, but he was good for gettin around the park" she explained fondly.

She reached out and touched the horse's nose "What color is he?" she asked. Emily began walking back towards her horse as performance time began to roll around "Black, as black as the shadows you see" she replied, unlocking her horse's stall and leading the big horse out.

Lucy stood to the side "So all this will be mine?" she asked. Emily patted her head "Everything. Don't worry, the end of the season is in a week. I'll teach you everything you need to know in that time". Before Lucy could say anything else Emily was leading her horse out of the stables and to her performance place.

Once she was gone Lucy went to each of the horses she'd been introduced to, but she stroked Roulette the longest "Black as the shadows. That means when I'm able to see you'll look the same won't you?" she asked. The horse nickered in response and she laughed "Oh, you like talking?" she asked.

The stallion nudged her hand and she smiled "Well I'm glad" she told him. Suddenly she heard something and someone ran into the barn "Lucy Lucy! Guess what?", it was Ariel. She laughed "What Ariel?" she asked. Ariel spun around "Mr. Y is giving everyone music lessons! We apparently have to know how to sing! Let's go go go!" she bounced, pulling Lucy's arm.

Lucy couldn't tell where they were going from the shadows, but eventually she realized it was back in the freakshow tent. When they entered Lucy lost her sight, it wasn't any brighter in here than it ever was. Ariel directed her by the piano.

"Alright you two, you're last. Now, let's do scales" he told them. Lucy swallowed "Um, Mr. Y I don't know if I can sing. I've never tried" she admitted.

He seemed to ponder this for a moment before striking a few keys on his piano "Well we'll find out right now won't we?" he asked. He started with Ariel, taking her up the scales, and up, and up, and up. Finally Mr. Y just stopped "Alright Ariel, your voice goes to infinate heights, let's just stop before you start breaking glass" he told her.

Now it was Lucy's turn, and he played a scale on his piano "Just match these pitches with your voice. Alright?" he asked. She nodded and opened her mouth, trying to match the pitch as best she could. "Sing louder" he told her as they continued to go up, Lucy was afraid to but she sang louder, having no idea if she was any good or not. As the got higher suddenly Mr. Y stopped.

Lucy shook her head "I'm sorry Mr. Y, I must sound terrible" she told him. Ariel began laughing "Terrible?" she asked "That was amazing! I never heard anything like it!" she told her. Lucy turned her head to Mr. Y, who was sitting silently "Don't say sorry for your voice, ever. Understand?" he asked slowly, Lucy nodded "Yes Mr. Y".

Their voice lesson continued, Ariel's voice improving as she used it, but Lucy continued to sing quietly, and Mr. Y continued telling her to open her mouth and sing out more. Finally their voice lesson stopped and Mr. Y sighed "Alright you two. I'll let you in on a little secret. You two are the best voices I've heard all day".

They giggled "Thank you Mr. Y" they said happily before skipping out of the tent "Well that was fun. I'm going back to the stables to see if Emily needs any help untacking. Bye Ariel!" she called. Ariel waved "Bye Lucy!" she called before running off, probably to Mr. Fleck.

As Lucy entered the stable she heard a voice voice "Emily are you sure you have to go to the circus?" it asked. Emily's reply came quickly "Yes Meg. I know it's sudden. But you also know this has been my dream for some time. To see the rest of the country".

Emily must have seen Lucy and she went over to her "Oh Meg, this is Lucy. Lucy, this is Meg Giry. One of the, performers" she introduced. Lucy looked up at Meg's outline and Meg gasped "What's wrong with her eyes?" she asked, coming closer to Lucy.

She was used to this and allowed Meg to examine her "I'm blind" she informed her plainly. To her surprise Meg shook her head "No, it's not that. I could tell that you were blind right away. But your eyes, they're two different colors" she told her. Lucy laughed "Really? Nobody's ever told me what color they were before. They were too busy gawking at the fact I was blind" she admitted.

Meg nodded "Oh yes, they're quite beautiful eyes really. Your right eye is a pale, ice blue, and your left eye is a chocolate brown" she told her, gently touching her right and left side so she would know. She blinked "That sounds kinda ugly" Lucy frowned, Emily and Meg both shook their heads "Oh no, it's quite interesting actually!".

Finally Meg bid Emily goodbye and she left the stables. Lucy looked up at Emily "What else is there about me? What color is my hair?" she asked, Emily laughed "It's not important Lucy. You should ask someone special to tell you those things", Emily approached her and ruffled her hair "Not because your ugly, your beautiful. But because when someone special tells you, it will mean more than just being knowledge".

The week went by quickly, too quickly. And when the season was done, Lucy helped Emily put blenkets on her horses as they prepared to leave "I'm gonna miss you Emily. You've taught me everything" she said as they finished putting a blanket on the last horse.

Emily sighed "Yes, I'll miss you too. When the circus comes back to New York, if it does, I'll come visit you. I promise!" she told her. Lucy felt tears prick her eyes but she nodded "I'll take good care of the horses" she promised. Emily laughed "I know you will. And, I trust you with one last thing" she said, pressing something into Lucy's palm.

"It's my good luck charm. I wore it for every dive and for every performance. And I want you to have it now, to remember me by" she said. Lucy rubbed it between her fingers before Emily took it and fastened it around her neck "I'll never take it off! I promise!" she said as Emily stepped back.

Suddenly some people entered the stables, and Emily told them which horses to take. She sighed as she picked up her small suitcase "I wish the best for you Lucy. And I hope that Mr. Y keeps his promise to you and builds you this wonderland" she said. Lucy nodded "I wish the best for you too" she replied as Emily hugged her.

She stepped back "Goodbye Lucy!" she called, suddenly she stopped and went back, scribbling something on a piece of paper and handing it to Lucy "What's this?" she asked. Emily laughed "It's the name of the circus I'm with. If you ever need anything, or have any questions, just write to me and send it to this address" she instructed.

Lucy nodded "I'll write! Thank you Emily" she said. With that, Emily picked up her suitcase, grabbed the remaining horse, and she lead her horse out the stable doors for the last time. Lucy sighed and leaned against one of the horse's stalls "I'll miss her a lot" she admitted "A lot".

Winter came in fast that year, but Lucy kept on with the chores, taking care of the horses every day like she'd done every winter for as long as she could remember. Before she knew it Ariel was coming in, singing Christmas carols cheerfully. Lucy laughed "What do you think you'll get this year?" she asked.

Ariel twirled around the stables as Lucy fed the horses "Oh I don't know. I have everything I could ever ask for!" she said, nearly tripping over her bent leg. Ariel bounced "Oh Lucy I wish you could see me perform on this hoop! It's just like Mr. Y said! Like flying! It's so fun you should try it!" she rambled.

She laughed "Well I wouldn't be able to see so, I'd probably end up falling" she admitted. Ariel went over to her, leaning on Snowy's stall door as Lucy lowered the pony's sling so she could stand on her three legs. She grabbed the barstood and put it where Snowy's front right leg would have been. "Why do you have to prop that horse up with a barstood?" she asked.

Lucy stroked Snowy's neck "She can't stand on three legs, we try to keep her up with this sling, but it crushes a horse's insides after a while, so we put her down and prop her up with this stool to hold her up. Lucky she's only a pony" she explained. Finally she left the stall and she and Ariel began walking out into Coney Island.

"Well I don't know about you, but I'm excited for Christmas. Our first Christmas free!" Ariel spoke excitedly. Lucy walked next to her, just as cheerful, but she was occupied making sure she didn't slip on any ice she didn't see. Ariel kept chatting away though "And to think! Christmas eve is tomorrow! And on Christmas all the freaks are going to Mr. Y's house. How fun does that sound?" she asked.

For a moment she thought of Mr. Y's horse, the black shadow had proven to be quite the companion. When she asked him a question he answered her, and he was gentle, always patiently waiting for her to leave the stall before devouring the food she'd left him. Sometimes the horses got a little eager and would knock her over as she tried to put their feed in their buckets.

Suddenly they were standing by the roller coaster and Ariel looked up at it "You know, I don't understand what we found quite so terrifying about this" she admitted. Lucy looked up at it, from it's outline she could see piles of snow on the tops of the tall hills. She looked over at Ariel's outline "It was the most intense experience we'd ever had in our lives. Do you remember Mr. Y and Mr. De Rossi's faces?" she asked.

Ariel laughed "Oh yes! Poor Mr. De Rossi, the expressions on his face, I thought at one moment he might utter his first words!" she told her. "Oh really? And what would his first words have been?" Lucy asked, chuckling as she pictured the poor mute freak on the ride "He would have said 'I think I'm gonna be sick'" she said cheerily.

They continued walking and suddenly Ariel hobbled ahead "I wonder why saegulls never fly south" she said randomly, chasing one of them down the boardwalk. Lucy shrugged "Maybe they like it here?" she asked, Ariel finally managed to make it fly away and she stood, waiting for Lucy "Aren't they cold though? If I were them I'd want to go where it's warm" she told her.

Lucy shrugged "Why do you ask such random questions?" she asked, Ariel bounced "I'm just happy!" she replied. When they reached the Fleck's apartment Mr. Fleck was finishing cooking something, it smelled good. "There you two are! You know it's almost dark out? Do you have any idea..." Ariel cut him off "Yes daddy we know. We're here though and we're fine" she assured him.

They sat in the main room and began chatting about random things until it was time to eat. They ate quickly, Mr. Fleck yelling at them to slow down, but they hardly listened. Once they were done they threw their dishes in the sink and ran to Ariel's room.

Ariel's room was small, with a bed, a night table, and a tiny window. Lucy usually had stayed with Emily during the winter, or with whoever would take her in for the night. But this winter she'd found herself sleeping on the floor of Ariel's bedroom.

As they lay in the darkness Ariel began talking again "So you ARE excited" she asked. Lucy lay on her back, her blank eyes staring blindly up at the ceiling "Yes, I'm excited" she replied. Ariel turned over so she was looking at Lucy "Do you think, do you think Mr. Y will be able to make you see again?" she asked. She shrugged "I hope so, do you think he'd be able to make you walk normal?" she asked.

"Oh I sure hope so! That would be amazing!" she replied, obviously Ariel had never given too much thought in the fact Mr. Y might be able to do such a thing. "I can't sleep now" she admitted as she shifted back so she was lying on her back.

Lucy chuckled "Ariel if you go to sleep then tomorrow will come sooner" she told her, closing her eyes and turning so she was facing away from Ariel. The other girl sighed "You're right. Good night Lucy" she said, snuggling into her blanket. Lucy pulled her blanket up and sighed "Good night Ariel".


	5. Chapter 5

Christmas day, something Lucy didn't particularly care about. It just seemed like every other ordinary day to her, after all, what good were gifts she couldn't see? If she couldn't see them, she couldn't use them. Pulling on her jacket, Ariel bounced next to her excitedly.

"Lucy isn't this exciting? I've never been so excited in my LIFE!" she rambled. Suddenly a knock came to their bedroom door and Mr. Fleck peeked in "You girls ready yet? The time it's taking for you to get ready is unreasonable! We'll be late!" he told them.

Ariel tugged Lucy forward, almost causing her to run into the wall on their way out the door. It had snowed quite heavily for the past 2 nights, making the snow come up almost to her knees. Ariel sighed "Aw, I hate snow. It's very hard to walk in when your leg doesn't BEND THE RIGHT WAY!" she yelled at the sky.

Lucy chuckled and Ariel tugged her through the snow "Ariel you be careful! You don't know what's under that snow! One of you could fall in a hole!" Mr. Fleck growled at them. Ariel merely laughed, after about 15 minutes of this, they finally reached Mr. Y's house.

Mr. Fleck sighed as he rang the doorbell, Mr. De Rossi answering and smiled, waving them in enthusiastically. They entered and Ariel smiled "Oh Lucy I wish you could see it! It's amazing in here!" she told her friend. Lucy didn't care so much what it looked like, all she knew was that it was warm, and that was enough to make her love it.

One of the freaks laughed as they entered "Finally they show up! Now we can do gifts right?" they asked. Mr. Y, who was sitting casually in his armchair, nodded "Yes, I suppose you're all eager to get your things. We'll begin then" he told them. One by one, each freak got a present, Lucy sat quietly listening to the gasps and the oohs and ahhs over each gift.

Suddenly Ariel's name was called and she stood, going over to him. She heard the rustling of a bag as Mr. Y pulled something out, handing it to Ariel. She laughed as she nearly dropped it "Ooof! Wow this is kinda heavy!" she said. She sat down, ripping the paper off and staring at her gift in confusion.

"You gave me a pile of junk for Christmas?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at Mr. Y. He shook his head and laughed "No my dear" he replied "Want to try again?" he asked. She stared at the pile of metal parts in front of her "It's a, um, I don't know. A pile of Junk?" she finally sighed, defeated.

He stood and knelt next to her, picking up the 'junk' "It's a brace, that will force your leg to bend correctly" he told her. She looked at it "You couldn't have made it more pretty? It's kinda, bulky" she told him. He laughed at her "It goes with your costume design. Here, let me put it on" he said.

Like she had most of the time in the freakshow, she lifted her skirt up just enough so that her bent leg was showing. Lucy could only guess what Mr. Y did, but after a few minutes she heard a band snap and Ariel laugh "That feels funny" she said as Mr. Y stood up.

She began putting weight on it "So, just walk?" she asked. They all waited in excitment as Ariel took a step, and then another. Suddenly she began to run around the room "Oh, oh my! I'm walking! I'm running!" she said excitedly, almost falling down. Mr. Y caught her and stood her up again, she continued going around the room. Finally she pulled Lucy up and spun her around "Oh if only you could see it!" she told her.

Mr. Y nodded "Indeed, she will be able to see it" he told her, putting a hand on her wrist and pulling her towards his armchair. He sat down and told her to kneel down infront of his chair and look up at him, she did as he asked and suddenly she felt something being dripped into her eyes.

It was cool, and felt good on her eyes, she didn't notice when Mr. Y told one of the freaks to turn out the lights. Suddenly she felt something being put in her eye, at first she recoiled at it, but Mr. Y held her in place as he put something in her other eye.

"Now, close your eyes, don't squeeze them shut, just gently" he told her. Doing as he asked, she closed her eyes, and listened as he told the freaks to turn the lights back on. He seemed a little nervous as he spoke "Alright Lucy, this is the moment of truth. On the count of three, open your eyes. Ready?" he asked.

Was she ready? Whether she was or not, she nodded and he began to count slowly "One..." the other freaks joined in "Two... THREE!". In a flash she opened her eyes, and stared up at Mr. Y, everything was blurry at first, but after she blinked a few times it came into focus.

Could it be? The feelings that coarsed through her body were more than she could describe, and she felt herself tremble as she looked around at everything. The colors, the lights, the everything! She could see it all so clearly now, Mr. Y was smiling at her "Well?" he asked.

In a flash she'd stood and was hugging him "I can see! I can see!" she said joyfully. She went over to Ariel and jumped "Oh Ariel I can see! And I can see all the details and everything! I can see your eyes even! Oh I don't know what color they are but I can see them!

Mr. Y looked almost frightened at those words "You can't see any colors?" he asked, she shook her head "Oh no, I do see colors. And they're beautiful. But I don't know what they're called because I've never seen them before!". He smiled and stood up "Well then we shall do a quick lesson" he stood and went to Ariel

"Her eyes?" he asked, Lucy nodded "They're green" he told her. After she repeated him he lead her over to the Christmas tree and began pointing at ornaments, naming each color. Finally she nodded "I understand now. Oh Mr. Y, you've given me the world. You've given me sight! I'll never be able to repay you foro what you've done!" she told him.

Mr. Y smiled "Well, I must warn you that you cannot keep these in all the time. You must take them out before you go to sleep, and, I'm afraid, before your acts" he told her. She looked at him confused "Wouldn't I need my sight to ride the horses?" she asked.

He shook his head "I only have 1 pair of these, I'm afraid when you ride your horses you'll lose one" he told her "And also, when you do the dive, I don't want your eyes getting hurt because of these when you hit the water". "Dive?" she asked, he nodded "Don't worry of such things now. Just enjoy your sight, and watch our final gift!".

Mr. De Rossi walked over when Mr. Y called him, he presented him with a little trumpet looking thing "Now, I want you to press this to, your scars" he instructed. Shaking, he did as he was asked "Now try to make a sound". Nothing happened, and Mr. Y looked slightly frustrated, but he calmed himself quickly "Just try a vowel sound, like 'Ah'".

There was another moment of silence before suddenly there was a noice "Ah?". The freaks in the room burst out cheering excitedly, as though they'd won the lottery. Mr. Fleck even started crying "What a day! My Ariel walking, Lucy seeing, and De Rossi making his first sound!" he said. Ariel hugged him "Oh Daddy" she chuckled.

Lucy couldn't believe it, she was seeing things, maybe she was dreaming. But it was too good to even be a dream! The festivities continued for the rest of the day, Ariel and Lucy going around to all the freaks showing them how special they were now.

"What do I look like?" Ariel asked Lucy, wanting to hear her friend describe things. Lucy smiled "Well, you have short black hair, and green eyes. And you're wearing a red dress with lace on the sleeves" she said. Suddenly she gasped "Hey! Is there a mirror? I want to see myself!" she said.

Ariel looked around "I don't know if Mr. Y has a mirror" she said. The rest of the night they went on a hunt for a mirror, but came up empty handed. They laughed "Well, I suppose there's a mirror at my house" Ariel said, patting her on the back.

Mr. Y walked up to them and smiled "You like you presents?" he asked, they both nodded "This is the best Christmas ever!" Ariel told him excitedly. He nodded "Lucy, I need to give you something that goes along with your present" he told her.

He took her hand and lead her to a different room, Ariel followed them in. He sighed "Sorry, it was getting a little crowded in there. I wanted to be sure you understood clearly and were able to do this, you'll have to concentrate. Now" he held up a vile of clear liquid "This is what I dripped into your eyes before I put the lenses in. Every morning before you put them in, you must put a drop of this in each eye" he told her.

She took the vile and suddenly he tipped her head back "Now, I'm going to show you how to put them in and out" in a moment he'd taken his finger and with a dap to each eye, she was in the dark again. He put one of the lenses on her fingertip "Now, use your hand to find your face" he instructed her.

The hand she wasn't using searched until she found her face, and then her eye. "Now, meet your hands by your face" he told her. She did it, and he guided her finger "Now just touch your eye to put it in" she felt her finger touch her eye and the lense stay as she pulled her hand away.

Lucy laughed "Haha, I'm blind on one side, and can see on the other" she. He smiled and gave her the other lense "Now do the same for the other eye" he told her, it took her a moment but she put the other lense in. And with a blink she was able to see clearly again.

"Thank you so very very much Mr. Y!" she told him gleefully as Ariel clapped. He nodded and suddenly they heard Mr. Fleck call for them. They went back into the main room to find Mr. Fleck standing in his jacket, waiting to go "Come on. We have to get home now. It's late" he told them.

They were about to protest when Ariel they walked back towards home Lucy stopped "I have to go feed the horses. I'll be home in a few minutes!" she told them. Mr. Fleck nodded "Very well, see you then!" he told her. Ariel smiled "Hurry of Lucy! I want to open the rest of my presents!" she called over her shoulder.

Lucy practically ran to the horse barn, pushing open the door she looked around, memorizing every detail "Wow" she whispered. Now she went to each horse, studying each detail on them. Their faces, the way their manes fell over smooth silky coats. Finally, she came to Mr. Y's horse, Roulette.

The horse was, as Emily had said, as black as the shadows she saw. He was so black, the only thing that looked different to her was his eyes, that were big and brown. She rubbed the stallion's nose and smiled "I can see it all so clearly" she whispered.

Suddenly a voice came from behind her and she spun around "Mr. Y!" she said. He smiled at her "Oh, I thought you'd be home now" he admitted. She laughed "I had to come see the horses! Oh Mr. Y, seeing things! I've never seen anything before. Imagine that, not seeing forever, and then one day, you see things as clear as day!".

He smiled "Well, I'm glad you enjoy it so much. I'm also glad you're here. I wanted this to be a surprise, but since you're here, I'd appreciate your help" he said. She nodded "Anything!" she told him, he led her over to Snowy's stall. The snow white pony stuck her pretty head out the stall door as Mr. Y entered.

"Put her in the sling" he told her, now that she was able to see it was much easier, she quickly hoisted the little pony so she was hanging a few inches above the ground. Mr. Y suddenly pulled out a needle and Lucy got nervous "What's that?" she asked. He looked at her "It'll make her lose feeling" he told her as he injected it into the pony's bloodstream.

Once that was done he pulled metal pieces out of a bag he'd brought into the stable with him "We're going to give Snowy a leg tonight" he told her as he began assembling the pieces. Lucy jumped and hugged the pony "You hear that Snowy? You'll be able to walk like a normal pony!" she said excitedly.

Mr. Y assembled it, bending the joint to make sure it worked "Alright" he pulled out a blaze and cut away the sling away from the pony's stub of a leg. Once that was done Mr. Y looked at her "You might want to leave for this part, there's going to be a lot of blood" he warned her.

She was, admittedly, curious to see what blood looked like, but that would be for another day. She stepped outside the stall and waited a long time as Mr. Y put Snowy's new leg on. She sat on a nearby haybale and tried not to fall asleep. Suddenly she heard the stall door open and Mr. Y ushered her in.

Poking her head into the stall, she gasped. Snowy was standing! All by herself! The pony's white coat had a specks of red around her new leg and staining her coat, but that was just from the work Mr. Y had done. Snowy walked up to her and nudged her hand, making her laugh "It's a miracle" she whispered.

They left the stall and Mr. Y stopped by his horse's stall, rubbing his nose "You don't know how to ride do you?" he asked, Lucy shook her head "I'm afraid not" she admitted. He looked at her, wiping his brow "Well, when the ice melts I'll teach you. I'll teach you everything you need to know, your tricks, your dives, everything" he told her.

"And the others?" she asked, he nodded "I'll be teaching them as well. But my main focus will be on the acts that are" he paused, searching for the words "Life threatening". Her eyes widened "Life threatening?" she asked, Mr. Y nodded "Yes, diving girls get killed and injured. I've heard reports from Atlantic City where they have such activities. But don't worry, if you do it right, and are prepared, no harm will come to you".

Lucy felt nervous now, no wonder Emily hadn't liked diving! Mr. Y approached her "I promise, nothing will happen to you. Falling off a horse can be just as fatal. But no employees of mine will be hurt!" he assured her. She nodded and they walked out of the barn together.

It was beginning to snow and the wind whipped her hair "Maybe I should bring you home" he said. On any other day, she would have been fine, but tonight she decided to take Mr. Y's offered hand and let him escort her back to the Fleck's home.

Once she got to the door she looked back at Mr. Y "Will you be alright getting home?" she asked. He nodded "Yes, I've dealt with worse weather. Good Night Lucy, Merry Christmas" he said, turning and walking back towards his house. Lucy smiled "Merry Christmas Mr. Y!" she called back before entering the flat.

Ariel ran up to her "FINALLY! I thought I was gonna die! Soon it won't even be Christmas anymore! Hurry up, we got presents!" she said. The tree was, sparse, which almost made Lucy sad. She'd imagined a fuller tree, like the ones people talked about so much. Maybe seeing things wasn't so great after all.

Lucy barely had time to think before Ariel sat her down and gave her a small box with blue paper. She laughed as she tore the paper off, pulling out a small toy soldier "What's this?" she asked. Ariel laughed "Well, we couldn't afford presents, so I regifted something we already owned" she told her.

Already owned? She looked back down at the little toy soldier, wearing a red coat and hat. She closed her eyes gently and felt the soldier, rubbing parts of it between her fingers "This is the soldier from the freak show!" she finally said. Ariel smiled and nodded "YES! Haha aren't you glad to finally see him?" she asked.

She looked back down at the soldiers face and couldn't help but laugh "I guess he is rather handsome, you were right" she told her. Lucy reached under the tree and pulled out her small gift to Ariel "Wow, this is worse wrapping job ever" she said, holding it up for a moment.

Ariel laughed "Of course! You couldn't see what you were doing!" she said, Lucy handed her friend the gift and she tore off the light pink paper in a flash. "Wow..." she stared at it for a long time "What is it?" she asked. Lucy looked at it and laughed "Honestly, I don't know. I found it, and it felt nice bewteen my fingers. So I put it in a box" she admitted.

Mr. Fleck looked over from his armchair, where he'd been sitting reading the paper "That's a crow feather" he told them. Ariel looked at it "Are there any crows on Coney Island?" she asked curiously, running the feather between her fingers, Lucy shrugged "I don't even know what birds look like" she said.

Finally Mr. Fleck told them it was time for bed. They didn't want to go, but he practically shoved them into the bedroom and closed the door behind them. Ariel rolled her eyes "I hate when he does that" she said, flopping onto her bed with a sigh.

Suddenly Lucy gasped "Ariel! The mirror!" she said. Ariel shot up "Oh yes that's right!" she said, going over to the table beside her bed, she opened a drawer and handed Lucy a hand mirror. She stared in wonder at her reflection, was that really her? In the mirror?

Well Emily and Meg had been right, she was rather pretty. With shoulder length chocolate curls that framed her face, and long bangs that were sweeped to the side, which she thought was horrible to look at. She'd had bangs about 2 years ago, but when they began to grow out she just brushed them to the side, and then, she supposed, they'd stopped growing.

However, the one thing she didn't agree with, were her eyes. How horrible, not only had she been blind at the freakshow, but her eyes were two different colors! She sighed, one blue eye, one brown, almost black eye. How much worse could it be?

She handed the mirror back to Ariel, satisfied, and took the lenses out of her eyes, putting each one carefully into the box Mr. Y had given her to keep them in. She was in the dark once again, and she handed the box to Ariel, who placed it on her night table.

"Are you happy?" Ariel asked once she'd gotten her leg brace off and crawled under the blankets. Lucy nodded "Very, are you happy?" she asked. Ariel sighed "I couldn't be happier" she told her. Lucy's blind eyes stared up "Do you think this fantasy land will be everything we've ever dreamed of?" she asked.

There was a long silence before Ariel admitted "I don't know, it seems like it's all too good to be real. Like we'll wake up tomorrow back in the cage at the freak show". With this, the girls grew silent, both thinking deeply about this. What if it was true, what if this was all just a dream? Could something so wonderful, really happen to them? They were freaks, shunned from society, could they really be normal?


	6. Chapter 6

Spring came too soon in Lucy's opinion, but it didn't matter. She was still excited to go out with the horses. Mr. Y had put out a schedule for when he'd be working with each freak. Today was Lucy's day, and Mr. Y had requested she come to the barn without her contacts in.

It was almost scary not being able to see as she blindly made her way to the stables that morning, with only shadows. For the past several months she'd been able to see perfectly clear every single day! And what a joy it was, there was so much to see in the world!

When she finally arrived at the stables, Mr. Y had put a harness on one of the diving horses, she couldn't tell which one, but from the horse's shadow she could tell it was a diving harness. Mr. Y walked over to her "Are you ready?" he asked, Lucy nodded "Ready as I'll ever be".

He lead her and the horse out to the flattest part of the beach, and away from the prying eyes of the public. "Which horse is it?" she asked him, he took her hand and placed it on the horse's shoulder "Roulette" he answered plainly. Roulette, she wondered, what is Roulette doing in a diving harness? He began running her hand over the harness "I want you to get a feel for where everything is" he told her quietly.

Once she'd touched just about everything within reach, he lead her to a platform, telling her to stand on it. She watched as Mr. Y and Roulette walked away and he began lunging him "Roulette's going to come by, when he does I want you to reach out and just run your hands over his back and over the harness" he instructed her.

She watched as Roulette's shadow started coming towards her and she reached her hands out, her fingertips just barely skimming over a piece of the harness and causing her to almost fall off the platform "Try again" he encouraged.

Lucy began to grow frustrated after 10 tries, but Mr. Y was very patient "I want you, when he comes by now, to grab onto the harness, and pull yourself on". 'But I've never ridden a horse before! How am I supposed to pull myself onto one?' Lucy wondered, slightly afraid.

Roulette came around the circle and she reached out, once again her hands barely brushed over his harness and she grabbed nothing. "Listen to him, you'll hear him coming" Mr. Y says as Roulette circles around again. This time when he came Lucy reached out, grabbing the first thing she could get her hands around.

Before she even got a chance to jump Roulette pulled her off the platform and dragged her a bit on the beach before she let go. The stallion stopped as she pulled herself to her feet, Mr. Y came to her side "Are you alright?" he asked. She nodded as she brushed the sand off "Again" she told him.

He helped Lucy back on the platform and she listened as Roulette's hoofbeats started again, at first a slow paced walk, and then gradually speeding into the canter he'd been in before. She reached out again, letting her hands brush over the stallion's back. He went around the circle, 'I'll be ready this time' she thought to herself determindly. As he came she jumped, grabbing the harness.

She felt Roulette under her for a moment but slipped off the side and fell into the sand once more. Once again Mr. Y approached her "Maybe that's enough for today..." she cut him off "No! Again! I almost had it!" she said, stumbling back and climbing on the platform.

Once again Lucy tried, and once again she hit the ground. Mr. Y didn't want her to continue but she didn't listen as she pulled herself up onto the platform again. After 2 more falls she felt something wet dripping down her upper lip. She wiped it away and waited as Roulette came around once again.

More determind than ever, she leapt, her hands wrapping around the harness as she pulled herself on. 'I made it, but where am I going?' Lucy thought, in a mix of excitement and fear. She hung onto the harness until Mr. Y commanded Roulette to stop, which he did.

Mr. Y took her hand, pulling her off of the stallion's back and carefully examining her face "Your nose is bleeding, we're done now" he told her firmly. At least she knew now what that had been, he pulled out a handkerchief and handed it to her "Just pinch your nose and it'll stop" he says before picking her up and putting her back up on Roulette.

The horse's steady beat cause Lucy grow tired and she wonders how long they were at it. She soon found out as the shadows began to fade, blending in with the darkness. It had taken her all day long to pull myself on that horse. They'd started at 8 that morning, and now it was dark out!

As Mr. Y put his horse away, Lucy sighed "Is he going to be my diving horse?" she asks, there's a bit of silence before he answers "No, we just used him because I know he can be trusted" he admits.

When Lucy walked in the door Ariel looked up excitedly "Oh goodie you're back! I got a surprise for you! Watch this!" she said. She bents down and ddid a handstand, after a brief moment she lost her balance and crashed into the table.

Lucy chuckled "Yes Ariel, you're just amazing" she said as she sat down on the couch "Hey does my face look ok?" she asked. Ariel sat down next to her "Um, yes? Is there a reason it shouldn't look ok?". She held up the bloody handkerchief Mr. Y had given her "Riding was a little rough today" she admitted.

Suddenly the door opened and Mr. Fleck came in, holding what looked like a mountain of shopping bags. He heaved them all onto the kitchen counter before peering around them at the two girls "You know the rides are getting prepped for opening. Why don't you two go outside and watch" he said.

Ariel's eyes lit up "Really daddy?" she asked excitedly, he nodded "Just don't go within 20 feet of them. They're dangerous". Lucy and Ariel barely heard him as they raced into their bedroom to get Lucy's lenses, once she could see once more they raced out the door "Yea yea. See ya later daddy" Ariel called as they disappeared out the front door.

Once they were out they began heading into the park "Hey I can't believe he let us outside today!" Lucy said cheerily, looking around at everything. Ariel chuckled "I can't either. Maybe he just wanted us to get some fresh air!" she replied, just as cheery.

They decided to visit Steeplechase Park first, seeing as it was home to their favorite ride, the Steeplechase itself. When they were in the freak show they'd heard stories of the horses that ran on tracks like a rollercoaster. Where you could race against your friends just like the real thing. Ever since the roller coaster incident, they'd claimed this ride as their favorite, and were determined to ride it one day.

On the way there though they passed the dock, which caused Lucy to stop. "Hey, why'd you stop?" Ariel asked, Lucy run up to the dock, trying to peer underneath "Remember when we were out in the park all those years ago? There was a man who was laughing at me for running into the posts of the dock. I wanna see if he's still there" she said.

Ariel raised an eyebrow "Why would you want to see if he's still there? Wouldn't you want him to not be?" she asked curiously. Lucy began making her way down to the beach, Ariel following close behind "Well I want to see what the man who was chasing and laughing at me looked like" she replied.

The two girls made their way under the dock, looking around. Ariel pulled her jacket close to her "This place gives me the creeps. Can we go back now? He's not even here!" she said. Lucy nodded "Yea let's..." they were caught off by a dark laugh "Hey chickies, why leavin so soon?" it asked.

Lucy spun around and saw a group of 3 men approaching them. Ariel and Lucy backed up against one of the dock supports as they approached. "Why afraid? We don't want to hurt you, we're just looking for a good time. We'll pay you a dime each" they said. Ariel's eyes narrowed in suspicion "Why would you need to pay us for a good time?" she asked.

She shook her head "Ariel that's not what they mean". Ariel looked confused "They wha?" Lucy grabbed her arm "JUST RUN!" she yelled. They began running up the beach, Ariel being slowed because of the brace.

The men pursued as the two girls scampered up onto the boardwalk. They darted forward, heading for home as fast as they could. But the men were beginning to gain. Suddenly Lucy tripped, Ariel falling over her as the men advanced "No need to run ladies. We're tired, and we'd prefer to be satisfied quickly" they told them.

Ariel pushed herself up, attempting to run for help, but one of the men caught her arm. She kicked him and screamed while another man grabbed Lucy, she squirmed in his grasp, before kicking him hard between the legs. He yowled and she managed to escape his grasp, taking off for home.

Lucy didn't even get halfway before Mr. Fleck galloped past her, nearly running her over. Obviously he'd heard his daughter's scream and had come to get her. Lucy turned around and followed, panting for breath as she watched Mr. Fleck barrel into the men who had his daughter from behind a trash can.

Finally it was over, and Mr. Fleck lead Ariel home "You're grounded! I told you not to go within 20 feet!" he growled. Ariel had tears streaming down her eyes "But Daddy we didn't. Lucy..." he turned around and snapped "Lucy what? You're my daughter! If Lucy wants to get herself killed let her!".

She shrank back, hurt by his words. It began to grow dark, and she sighed, turning and walking into Coney Island. She'd go find somewhere else for tonight she decided. Obviously she wasn't welcome in the Fleck home tonight.

Coney Island at night, during the off season was dark and dreary. Only a few lights were on here and there. Lucy looked around what was up so far of Phantasma. The concert hall, a couple of various attractions like a hall of mirrors and a boat ride. Mr. Y had made sure the concert hall was finished first, above all else.

The concert hall seemed like it would be better than the stables, warmer. She snuck in the back door, finding a crate backstage she sat and began to cry. Through her tears she reflected on how lucky Ariel was to have a father who cared about her. She wished she had her own parents.

When she'd been born her parents had been going through hard times. They'd left her in the freak show promising her they'd come back. She remembered how she'd longed every night for them to return for her. But years passed, and they never came back. Instead one day she'd been given a letter stating they'd been killed in an automobil accident.

It wasn't unlike what had happened to Ariel's mother. It made Lucy despise the machines and their drivers. She felt herself sobbing harder, for the first time in a long time she had to call herself an 'orphan'. She'd always felt she had a family, whether it be her real parents, or her freak family. But now she didn't even have that! She was all alone! What she would have given to be back in the cages now, where nothing went wrong they were all just together.

Her tears were interrupted by a hand being placed on her shoulder. She looked up to see Mr. De Rossi with a concerned look on his face. He pulled up a crate and sat down next to her "Why're you so sad?" he asked her gently.

She turned away from him "I made a big mistake today" she admitted. He patted her back "What kind of mistake?" he prodded, she sniffled "I almost got Ariel hurt today. Mr. Fleck got all mad and I don't think he wants me back".

Mr. De Rossi pulled her arm so she looked at him, he wiped her tears away "Did he outright say that?" he asked. She swallowed back more tears "W.. Well I don't know. He said that if I wanted to get myself killed I was allowed to do it. But Ariel was HIS daughter so..." she trailed off.

He sighed "Maybe you should talk to him?" he suggested "Because I'll tell you a secret. I think he loves you as much as Ariel". Lucy looked down at the floor "I guess I'll try tomorrow. I think he's angry tonight" she said. He ruffled her hair "I wish I could find you somewhere more comfortable to sleep" he told her. She smiled slightly "I'm used to sleeping on the floor of Ariel's room anyway" she assured him.

With a final goodbye he stood and left her alone. Feeling a little better she began to walk around the backstage, seeing if she could find some pillows or maybe even a blanket. Coming up empty-handed, she returned to her crate, lying down beside it.

She reached into her jacket pocket, pulling out the box where her lenses were kept. She and Ariel had left in such a haste earlier she'd brought it with her. She sighed as her vision was reduced to shadows for the second time that day.

When she fell asleep, she didn't know. But it wasn't long before she felt someone nudging her "Lucy!" they called urgently. She blinked up in the darkness "Oh. H... Hello" she said to whoever was talking to her, she couldn't tell because it was too dark to see any shadows.

They pulled her up and she felt firm yet gentle hands on her shoulders, forcing her to face them, "You know Mr. Fleck has been worried sick over you? As well as everyone else?" they asked, straightening her clothes. She could tell from his voice it was Mr. Y. She yawned "What's the matter?" she asked drowsily.

Before he answered someone came up behind him "Oh you found her. Lucy you're in a lot of trouble!" a dark growl told her, it was Mr. Fleck. She stumbled back in a bit of fright, falling backwards over her crate and falling on her back, knocking the wind out of her lungs.

She rolled over on the floor gasping for air, Mr. Fleck flew into a panic "Oh god she can't breath! I killed her I killed her!". Mr. Y tried to assure him she was alright as he went to help her, but she pushed him away. She was tired now, she just wanted to catch her breath and go home, where ever home was.

The next voice that spoke was Mr. Y's again "Lucy you're not supposed to be here!" he told her, as she finally allowed him to help her sit on the crate as she coughed and gasped for air. He placed a gloved hand on her forehead "Were you here all night?" he asked her. She looked at him, her blank eyes unfocused on his face "Yes, all night. I had nowhere else to go" she told him plainly.

Mr. Fleck became shocked "Nowhere to go? What about home? You know me and Ariel have been worried sick about you?" he questioned. Lucy shook her head exhaustedly, her breath coming more even now "You told Ariel you din't care if I went and got myself killed". She leaned over in exhaustion, nearly falling off her crate. Mr. Y caught her, sitting her back up on the crate. She slumped over "I'm tired" she told them.

He wasn't done yet though, he knelt in front of her as though she were a princess and took her hands "Lucy I didn't mean it! You must know that! I didn't mean to yell, I was just scared was all! In fact I've been meaning to tell you something for some time now, but didn't know when to do it" he swallowed nervously.

"Lucy, how would you like to join me and Ariel's family. Permanently?" he asked. She blinked in a bit of confusion "Be yours? Like be a Fleck?" she asked. He nodded "Yes, will you?" he asked. She swallowed, looking over at Mr. Y then back at Mr. Fleck "I don't know what to say" she told him.

Mr. Y coughed "How about yes?" he murmered. Lucy chuckled and flung herself into Mr. Fleck's arms "Then yes! I'll be a Fleck!" she answered. He stood with her still in his arms, holding her tightly "Oh Lucy I'll make sure you and Ariel have everything!" he told her, tears of joy streaming down his face.

"Am I still in trouble?" Lucy asked, tears leaking from her own eyes. Mr. Fleck merely laughed "Oh yes, of course, you're still in trouble" he told her as he began carrying her home. He turned "Thank you Mr. Y! I'll be sure to send Ariel for her training this afternoon!" he called. Lucy began to nod off to sleep, but before she did she managed to drowsily call out "Bye Mr. Y!" before being carried home by her offical new father.

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><p><strong>Where the hell have I been? Well honestly I don't know. I had to rewrite this whole chapter because I wrote it really weird the first time. And going through fixing everything really unmodivated me. But I should have another update soon. By at least October! That's close enough right? YES IT IS!<strong>

**So guess who watched Annie last night? Haha, yea, for the first time I saw the Disney movie version of it or whatever. Made me realize that Lucy's actually an ORPHAN. And the guy who adopted Annie sorta reminded me of Daddy Fleck, you know, being bald and all. Haha, so yea, that's where the ending of this chapter came from. **

**Poor Lucy, you know they say Curiosity killed the cat. Even though she didn't even find who she was looking for! Oh yea, Fun Fact, the scene with Mr. Y and Lucy with the horse training is inspired by a scene in the movie 'Wild Hearts can't be broken' which is based on a true story of a diving girl who goes blind, but keeps diving the horses. Inspiration for Lucy's character? Indeed it was! It was a pretty good movie, helps me a lot with how the diving horses worked and what show biz was like back then. **

**Please Review! And thanks for reading and being patient! It's most appreciated!**


	7. Chapter 7

The daunting climb to the top of the diving tower, had been held off until they simply couldn't wait any longer. Lucy was not as afraid of climbing to the top of the tower as Mr. Y was.

He wasn't afraid of heights, he was afraid of falling off the top by accident, or Lucy falling off the top. When she was up there, there could be no mistakes. Mr. Y made sure to remind her of that every time she got on her horse, whether it was practicing jumping on, or practicing her trick riding.

Today though, Lucy and Mr. Y decided to climb to the top, just so she could get a feel of things. Lucy felt her way forward, Mr. Y helping her over to the chute where the horses were released.

"Your horse is going to start here, the tower is 60 feet tall right now. So this slopes up to the top where you'll be standing" he took her arm and the two of them began walking up the horse ramp. To Lucy it seemed endless, but eventually Mr. Y yanked her to a halt "We're at the top now".

Lucy wished she could see, from the black shadow outlines she could see the New York City skyline, and the few people walking past looked like little specs of dust. She sighed and sat down on the platform where she'd have to stand and wait for her horse.

Mr. Y sat opposite her "What you do up here will make or break your ride. If you don't mount that horse correctly as he goes past, the fall will kill you" he warned. Suddenly they heard a voice shout and Lucy watched as Mr. Y's shadow came to her side and holding her arm so she wouldn't move as he looked down at whomever was shouting.

"Sir! One of the support beams on the tower is broken!" he called. Suddenly the wind blew and Lucy felt the tower sway uneasily, Mr. Y took his arm off her for a moment to lean over and yell back "Well tell one of the workers to come fix it then!". Mr. Fleck wasn't backing down just yet "You get my girl off that tower this instant!" he barked.

She took a step back "Maybe we should do as he..." she was cut off by stepping back just one step too far without Mr. Y's noticing, she teetered on the edge of the drop, flailing her arms to grab onto the nearest object. Mr. Y was at her side in an instant, but his rush to catch her resulted in him pushing her back up onto the platform as he went tumbling forward off of it.

Lucy shrieked as she heard Mr. Y hit the pool below, feeling her way to the ramp, she ran as fast as her blind eyes would allow her to. Once at the bottom she was cut off by a crowd who'd come to see what was going on. She pushed her way through, but the shadows began to make her confused.

Her throat tightened, where was she even going? She should have stayed on the tower until someone was able to lead her down. Suddenly she was grabbed by a strong familar arm and pulled through the crowd "Daddy Fleck?" she asked. He hushed her "Come on" she stopped in her tracks "Wait! What about Mr. Y?" she asked fearfully.

This was all her fault, she shouldn't have been moving blindly on top of a 60 foot tower. What if this cost Mr. Y his life? She felt tears sting her eyes as she was pulled by her adopted father through the crowds. Suddenly they were clear of the crowds and she wished she could see.

"Mr. Y's right here, just calm down" Mr. Fleck told her soothingly. She was trembling as he lead her over to his crumpled form. She could tell he was lying by the side of the pool, as the dark outline of the tower loomed overhead. Mr. Y took her hand gently as she fell to her knees beside him. His hand was frigid cold as he gasped and coughed up water. Lucy couldn't help herself as she began sobbing "I'm so sorry Mr. Y! It was an accident! I didn't mean to!" she told him.

He hushed her, but his voice sounded hoarse and strained "It's alright, it was my own mistake. I shouldn't..." he trailed off, trying to catch his breath "I shouldn't have brought you up there to just wander around. You should only be up there if you're going to jump off, and you're not ready for that yet" he finished, more faintly than he'd started.

Mr. Fleck cleared his throat "There's a doctor on the way sir". At this Mr. Y groaned miserably and Lucy continued to cry, he gently squeezed her hand "I feel alright" he assured her. Lucy shook her head "You're in pain! You could have drowned! What if..." he hushed her "Relax now Lucy, before you work youself into a faint".

Suddenly more voices were heard coming, one was familar, one was not. "Daddy? Lucy what happened?" the familar voice asked "Lucy?" she asked. It was Ariel, and Lucy felt her come to her side "Lucy are you alright? Mr. Y?" she asked. The unfamilar voice was that of the doctor, who was examining Mr. Y "Can we move him to his home?" he asked.

He nodded "Yes, Mr. Fleck?" Mr. Y asked, Mr. Fleck help up his hand "I will help you in anything you need sir" he said, coming over to help his boss up. Lucy continued trembling as Ariel helped her up "Let's go home and take a nap? Would you like that?" Ariel asked "Yes, some tea and a nap will fix you right up" she told her new sister.

Lucy sobbed "No! It's all my fault what happened to Mr. Y! I should stay with him!" she said. Ariel didn't listen as she lead Lucy back home, having her go change while she made some tea "Lucy I'm sure Mr. Y will be alright. I mean come on, it's Mr. Y! He can do anything!" she told her.

"Can he?" Lucy asked, swallowing back her tears as she tried to calm down. Ariel giggled "Of course he can! He's building us a whole city of wonders! Remember? He made it so you can see! He made it so I can walk. Mr. Gangle talks nonstop! He can do anything!". She took some deep breaths and sighed, Ariel was right, this was Mr. Y they were talking about!

But Mr. Y was still human, and if a fall from the tower could kill her, surely it did something to him, something more than he let on. Ariel placed a cup of tea in her hands before sitting next to her, rubbing her back comfortingly "Mr. Y'll be just fine. In fact, when Daddy gets home after your nap how about we go visit him?" she asks.

She sipped her tea and nodded "Yes, I'd like that" she replied. After they finished their tea in silence Ariel took her to their room, as promised Mr. Fleck had finally gotten Lucy a bed. Though it made the small room more cramped, the two girls didn't mind at all.

Lucy crawled into bed, trying to relax herself. Mr. Y had been right when he told her to relax before she grew faint, for now she felt exhausted from all the emotions that had raced through her. It wasn't long before she fell asleep, and it also didn't seem like long before Ariel was nudging her again "Hey, Lucy!" she whispered.

"Wha?" Lucy asked drowsily, lifting her head from the pillow. Ariel pressed the box containing her lenses and the small vile of liquid into her hand "Daddy's returned. Let's go visit Mr. Y and see if he needs anything" she said, her voice hushed. Lucy quickly dripped the soothing liquid into her eyes before putting in her lenses.

With her sight restored, Lucy could see that the room was dimly lit, with just a single candle glowing. She stood and followed Ariel out, and was surprised to find the living room just as dark "Daddy's sleeping, he was very tired" Ariel told her in a whisper. They threw on their jackets before stepping out into the street.

The sun was going down, and Lucy wondered how late it was as the streets became bathed in shadows. As the two girls walked down the street Ariel stopped suddenly in front of a wall, and looked back at her shadow "Hey check this out" she said as she held up two fingers "Hehe, I made a bunny" she giggled childishly.

Lucy rolled her eyes and held up her arm, making a swan's head "Well I made a swan, and it'll eat your bunny" she told her. Ariel gasped "You're swan can't eat by bunny! Swans don't even eat bunnies. Do they?" she asked. They both stood puzzled "I don't know" Lucy finally answered.

After pondering this for another moment they continued their walk the rest of the way to Mr. Y's house. They remembered where it was from the Christmas party, and though it looked much different without the snow and lights, they knew it was it. They both stood out the door and Ariel looked at the door nervously "You knock on it" she said.

"Me? Why don't you knock on it it was your idea to come here!" she said. Ariel pouted "But what'll we say to him when we get in there?" she asked. Lucy shrugged "How should I know?" they continued arguing until they realized it was dark out. Lucy rolled her eyes and knocked on the door "We'll probably wake him and I'll blame you for it!" she huffed.

They didn't wait long before their was a call from inside for them to enter. Lucy and Ariel both looked at each other before swallowing and entering the house. The house was almost pitch black, and Lucy couldn't help but feel cheated that it was pitch black when she was finally able to see. "Mr. Y?" Ariel called.

He answered them "Ariel? In here!" he called. They followed the sound of his voice to his bedroom, which was quite a bit brighter than the rest of the house. Mr. Y was propped up, a book resting in his lap as he looked up at the two girls standing at his bedroom door.

"Ariel, Lucy, I'm actually glad you're here" he told them. Lucy began to tremble as she examinded Mr. Y closely. He was pale, though he was sitting up, he seemed exhausted and weak, she also noted that he was covered by a lot of blankets, even though the room felt warm all on it's own.

Ariel walked over to Mr. Y's bedside and pulled up a chair casually, Lucy came and stood next to her, but couldn't bring herself to sit down. Mr. Y glanced up at her, looking slightly concerned, but didn't have the strength to argue with her, she didn't look like she'd do as he asked at the moment.

Mr. Y began speaking "Ariel, you, your father, and Mr. De Rossi are going to need to do me a big favor" he told her. Ariel nodded "Oh sure we'll do anything for you Mr. Y!" she replied eagerly, he continued "After today I have to rest and can't go out very much. That means I won't be able to open my park at the beginning of the season. So, I need you three to take charge and open it for me, and keep the park running until I'm able to do so. Can you?" he asked.

She nodded "Oh yes we can. But we don't know how to run the park" she told him, sounding a little nervous, Mr. Y smiled "Don't you worry, tomorrow bring Mr. De Rossi and your father to visit and I shall teach you all how to do yoru jobs" he told her. Lucy was grippinhe back of the chair, keeping herself steady.

Her adopted family was going to run the park? What about her? What was she going to do? Ariel seemed to be thinking the same thing because she spoke up "What about Lucy? What's she gonna do?" she asked. Mr. Y looked up at her, his eyes examining her silently "Lucy you look ill, why don't you have a seat?" he asked. Lucy shook her head and Mr. Y sighed "Lucy, I'm going to need some help personally. While your family and Mr. De Rossi run the park, I'm going to need you inside to help me with paperwork and such".

Lucy began shaking and he held out his hand, beckoning for her to sit on the end of his bed, before she fainted. She quickly took his hand and practically collapsed on his bed, tears causing her vision to become blurry "Mr. Y this is all my fault" she cried for what seemed like the second time that day. He hushed her "Lucy, you're a grown woman now, don't cry. This wasn't your fault" he told her.

She had a hard time believing him, but he squeezed her hand comfortingly "Even if this didn't happen, I would have still needed you and Ariel's help, as well as everyone else's. After all, the city of wonders is for you, it's yours! So you should be helping running it" he explained gently.

Ariel nodded "Yes that sounds fair, what fun would it be to have the whole world and have to run it by yourself?" she asked. Lucy wiped away her tears, still sniffling as Mr. Y closed his eyes for a moment "It's dark out, your father will be worried about you. I would escort you home but..." his voice trailed off and Ariel smiled "Don't worry Mr. Y, we'll get back home alright together won't we Lucy?" she asked.

Lucy nodded "I suppose so" she replied, her voice still trembling slightly. Mr. Y looked at her, sighing "Lucy go home and rest tonight, and report back here tomorrow morning. I still have a lot of work to do and I'm going to need help" he told her. Lucy nodded and sniffled "I'll be here" she promised as they stood.

He smiled at them as he put his book on the bedside table "Well, Good Night then" he said. Ariel and Lucy both smiled and bowed slightly to him, to this he laughed "What has changed here? One moment I'm locked in a cage as a freak with two giggly little girls who would never take an order if their life depended on it, to being the owner of an amusement park, having two beautiful women bow before me ready to serve my every whim". Lucy smiled "We're like family Mr. Y, we'd do anything for you!".

They finally all managed to say their final goodnights before the two girls turned and exited the house. Turning out the remaining lights as per Mr. Y's request. Once they were out the door and a good ways down the sidewalk Ariel sighed "Mr. Y's right, we did all change didn't we?" she asked. Lucy raised an eyebrow "This coming from the one who was amusing herself with shadow puppets a few hours ago" she replied.

Ariel shrugged "Well we didn't get entertainment like that back in the freak show. I say, that this is our last time to get our childish kicks out while we still can" she said. Lucy rolled her eyes "Yea, too bad we won't have time for that anymore" she replied.

When they reached the house, not much to their surprise, they were greeted by a frenzied Mr. Fleck. "Oh thank god I thought you'd gotten lost! I woke and you weren't here and then it was dark and I was about to call the police..." Ariel hugged her father and giggled "We're fine, we were just visiting Mr. Y!" she told him.

Mr. Fleck looked over at Lucy, who'd gone over to the couch and practically fallen asleep already. Ariel yawned and he smiled "You can tell me all about it tomorrow, for now it's time for the two of you to go to sleep. It's late" he told them. Ariel yawned again, and began trekking to her bedroom.

Lucy on the other hand, didn't want to leave her position on the couch. Mr. Fleck sighed and picked her up "You're lucky I'm the world's strongest man or you'd be sleeping on the couch" he teased her. She sighed and snuggled into his shoulder, he put her in bed "Now now, you have to take your lenses out before you go to sleep Lucy" he reminded her gently, handing her the box.

She blinded herself for the night, placing the lenses carefully in the box and setting it on the table between her bed and Ariel's. With that Mr. Fleck kissed them both goodnight and left the room, extinguishing the candle as he left. Lucy immediately began to drift to sleep, but before she could Ariel piped up "Can you imagine? US running our own dream?" she asked.

"No, we're running Mr. Y's dream for us" she replied drowsily. Ariel turned so she was lying facing Lucy "Don't you like his dream for us? It's certainly better than the dream I had" she admitted. Lucy giggled "What was your dream?" she asked, "Maids!" Ariel replied matter of factly.

Ariel and Lucy both laughed "Well, we are both going to do what we SERIOUSLY wanted to do now" she told her. Ariel nodded "Yep, that's right. I'm so excited!" she said. Lucy didn't respond though, she'd already fallen asleep in the middle of their conversation. Ariel huffed before closing her eyes to go to sleep "Fine, just fall asleep then. I'll get you back!" she challenged quietly before following Lucy's example and going to sleep.

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><p><strong>Man, I've been trying to find the modivation to write fanfiction but it's just SO HARD! I don't know if it's because I'm so busy lately or what, but definately having trouble finishing. I've started a chapter for like every fic I have going right now, but can't find it in me to finish! What the?<strong>

**So, everything was just going a little TOO well for my typical liking. You'll find in my writing I like to stir up a lot of drama and have bad things happen. Just remember my first LND story, bad event after bad event. It was almost like taking out all my miserable feelings on my poor characters there. **

**This story however, I promise will be a lot better. Actually, I have my reasons to doing this to Mr. Y. The first, is to set up when 'Til I hear you sing' occurs. I mean, come on, opening day of his park and he's not even participating in the slightest? There had to be a reason, and well, HERE IT IS! He was too weak to attend, he had to just chill in his little workshop place and watch. **

**Lucy is also going to have some major quarrels with the diving horses now, after this event. Remember how in the original fic my OC was petrified of the diving horses? Well, this character has now started off in a similar way, however, instead of her fear getting worse, it'll probably fix itself. After all, it's like a rollercoaster. Once you've gone down that 200 ft drop once, it's not so bad doing it again and again.**

**So, Thanks to my lovely reviewers. And, I really don't know where to go with this story. I mean, I have some ideas but, one of the reasons it's so hard to write is because it's hard coming up with things to happen (Another reason why my writing style consists of numerous bad events, it keeps the story moving one way or another and it's surprisingly easy to write up in a haste). Anyway, what I'm trying to say is, IF YOU HAVE AN IDEA OR WANT SOMETING TO HAPPEN/CHANGE, FEEL FREE TO REVIEW OR MESSAGE ME!**

**And even if you have no ideas at all, opinions and reviews will be just as nice. They're like modivational cookies for the fanfiction soul! The more I get, the sooner the update'll come! So, thanks to my reviewers again, keep on reviewing! And thanks for reading! Tune in next chapter, where stuff'll happen! I think...**


	8. Chapter 8

"Aren't you excited? Opening day in just a week!" Ariel babbled excitedly. Lucy brushed her skirts quietly, looking up at Ariel and smiling slightly "I suppose it is a bit exciting" she replied quietly. Ariel bumped her "You don't sound very enthusiastic! Come on! Look at us! All fitted in our new costumes! We're so beautiful!" she told her.

Lucy looked at her reflection in the mirror she and Ariel were standing in front of. Yesterday they'd been fitted with their costumes, and starting today they were required to wear them. Ariel grabbed her top hat off the nearby table and plopped it on her head "There, NOW we're perfect!" she beamed.

Their costumes were black, gray, and white, and Lucy couldn't understand why at all. Ariel's costume had a bit of colorful peacock design under her black feathers, but other than that, all of the costumes, from the ones she'd seen, were black and dreary. Her own costume was a black, knee length dress with a white apron and puffed sleeves. The skirt itself felt as though it should be a full length ballgown, because it poofed out a like one, but it was short. If that wasn't odd enough, she had black and white striped stockings, with knee high boots. The only thing she might have said was plain about her costume was the black bow that she had to wear in her hair, and the maid's cap. When she first got the cap she thought it was a joke, but Ariel said it made her look 'cute'.

Not only that, but they'd all been given stage names as well. Ariel managed to keep her name, staying Miss Fleck, Daddy Fleck however, was now to be addressed as 'Mr. Squelch', and when they'd seen Mr. De Rossi, he'd informed them that his new name was 'Dr. Gangle'. What was her name though? Mr. Y had yet to tell her, and it was driving her a little mad, that everyone else should have their names, but hers was being withheld!

She huffed and Ariel chuckled "Don't be sour Lucy, Mr. Y won't be happy if you're mad!" she said. Lucy smiled "Yes, well he's been getting up and about much more lately, he'll probably want to visit the Ayrie today".

They continued talking as they went out into the kitchen, where Daddy Fleck was setting the table for breakfast. He smiled at them both as they sat down, beginning to eat their breakfast as fast as they could without choking.

"Slow down! Before you kill yourselves!" Daddy Fleck scolded them, they ignored him, pushing their plates aside, they stood and raced out the door "Bye Daddy!" Ariel called. He sighed "Be careful" he called after them.

The two of them practically raced to Mr. Y's house, excited for whatever was in store for today. Once they reached it Lucy knocked at the door, and they both stood giggling like little school girls waiting for him to answer.

Mr. Y opened the door, and raised an eyebrow at them "Why so excited this morning?" he asked them. Ariel shrugged "We're just excited for today! Phantasma will be open in just a week! Can you believe it?" she asked. Mr. Y sighed "I can believe it. Now Ariel, your routines are learned by now I assume?" he asked.

Ariel stared up at him, her eyes widening slightly and her face turning into an almost blank expression "Yes, well today you really need to be working on those, you'll be performing opening day remember!" he told her. She nodded "Yes, of course" "Is your costume finished for that?" "Yes it is" "Well go put it on then, go practice".

She smiled brightly "Right away Mr. Y! Bye Lucy! See you at lunch!" she said before turning and rushing off towards the concert hall. Mr. Y turned to Lucy "You need to learn to dive the horses, today" he told her.

Lucy swallowed nervously "So soon?" she asked, he nodded "You haven't ridden off the tower yet, we need to be absolutely sure you can do it. Better to fix things now, when we have a week, than ruin your debut" he told her. She shook her head "I don't even think my, erm, um, bathing suit is ready yet sir!" she stuttered, trying to excuse herself. Couldn't they go do something not life threatening?

He shook his head and brought her inside. He was walking normally, but carried a black cane to help him for the longer distances. Lucy stood, brushing her skirts "Can I make you some tea?" she asked, he waved her off "Don't change the subject. Now, here's your bathing suit. I was going to have it delivered to you last night, but I was caught up in my work". She took it into her hands and slowly backed out of the room, before spinning around and going to change.

The bathing suit was simply black, with nothing fancy about it in the slightest. She stepped out, slightly embarrassed to be in such attire in front of the Mr. Y. He must have sensed her standing outside the door for her called her in, and she timidly stepped into the room. "It's a little big" she told him.

He raised his visible eyebrow "You'll grow into it" he said "But what if it falls off?" Lucy pressed. Mr. Y stood up and began leading her out the door "We'll give refunds" he simply stated before they began heading towards the stable. One of the diving horses was already harnessed and ready to go. "Your lenses?" Mr. Y asked, holding out his hand.

Blinding herself quickly, Lucy felt her way to the horse's side, from the height and the length of the mane, she could tell the horse before her was Blissy, the pretty little palomino with an almost dainty disposition. She felt as Mr. Y began leading her, and she held onto her mane, letting Blissy lead her towards the tower which she knew loomed ahead. Before she could even calm her mounting nerves she felt Mr. Y guiding her hands to the ladder at the side of the tower.

"Just start climbing up alright. When you get to the top, don't be afraid. Face the opening, you'll tell from the shadows, wave to the crowd, then get up on the side to wait for the horse. When you're ready, just signal" he explained to her slowly. All through his instruction she nodded understandingly.

She could hear him walking away, leading Blissy off. Taking a deep breath, she began to climb the ladder, feeling each bar as she came up. Suddenly her head bumped into something, and she reached up, touching the door leading up onto the tower. Swallowing back her fear, she pushed her way up and onto the tower, where she staggered for a moment.

There were gasps below as she nearly fell, and she realized she and Mr. Y were not alone. From the shadows she could make out, a few of the other freaks and performers had gathered to watch her. She held up her arms and waved briefly before getting up on the platform.

Fear gripped her and she felt like crying. She'd never been so afraid in her entire life, she couldn't see what she was doing! One wrong move and it was over for her. Raising her hand in hesitation, she brought it down swiftly. The sounds of hooves hitting wood was faint at first, but as the horse galloped closer and closer, the sounds got louder and louder.

Swallowing back her fear, she reached forward, waiting for the horse's harness to come within her reach. The horse's hooves continues beating steadily towards her. As she waited, she suddenly remembered the necklace Emily had given her, the one she said was lucky. Nothing had happened to Emily, so then nothing should happen to her! Suddenly it was within her grasp, the horse's mane skimmed under her fingers. She found the harness, and with everything she had, she leapt from the platform to the horse, pulling herself on her back.

Then they were falling, she tipped her head to the side, remembering instructions she'd first had about diving. Landing in the water, she heaved a sigh of relief as she swam next to her horse. She made it! She was alive! Before her horse could climb out she got on her back again. and waited for someone to retrieve them. "Is she alright?" she heard a familiar growl. She turned her head to the voice and chuckled "I'm fine Daddy Fleck!" she called.

Mr. Y appeared next to her horse, patting Blissy's neck and then taking Lucy's hand to get her attention. She looked down and smiled, even though she couldn't see his face, she knew he must be smiling "Congratulations Lucy, you're ready for opening day" he told her. He patted her hand before taking Blissy's head and clipping a rope to it, leading the triumphant pair back to the stable.

Once there Lucy automatically slipped off her horse's back and took over, taking off the diving equipment and making sure she was dry. Finally she tossed some hay into the stall before closing the door. As she turned around she bumped into Mr. Y, who took her hand and pressed a box into them "Your lenses back, I imagine you'll want to see now?" he asked. She nodded and put them in quickly.

Looking up at Mr. Y, he nodded to her "Change, and then you're, free, for the rest of the day I suppose" he told her. "Are you sure Mr. Y? You don't need anything at all?" she asked, he shook his head simply "I'm going to the Ayrie to work on some papers before opening day. Bills to pay and such, if I need anything I will call for you Miss Valentina".

She gasped "What?" "Miss Valentina is your name, you've earned it after that dive. Valentina means brave". With that Mr. Y turned and left Lucy alone in the stables. She stood for a long moment, simply thinking over what had just happened. When she was sure Mr. Y was out of hearing range, she cheered and twirled around the barn, before running to Snowy's stall door and peeking into it. "Hear that? I've gotten my show name! And I dove! Everything's going so well!".

Snowy nudged her still dripping hair and Lucy chuckled "Yea, I suppose I should go change and dry off. I'll take you for a walk after ok?". She did just that, quickly changing back into her costume and rubbing her hair dry as best she could before brushing it out and tying the black ribbon into a neat bow. Checking herself briefly, she decided she looked just fine, aside from her eyes, the colors made her almost bitter towards herself. But why should she be? She shrugged and ran out.

"Come on Snowy!" she said, opening the stall door and letting the little white pony out. She clipped a rope onto her halter as they walked out, in no rush, she knew they probably didn't need the rope, but it was required all animals have one when out in public areas.

Where to go first was what Lucy asked herself, they could go just about anywhere. When Lucy thought about it, food sounded good right about now, so that was the direction they headed in first. "Lucy!" she turned and smiled as Ariel ran up next to her "Glad I caught you! You gotta come to the steeplechase park RIGHT NOW!" she said "There's this guy, who made a bet that he could eat 100 hotdogs in one day! He was on 72 when I left! COME ON!".

As awkward and strange as it sounded, Lucy followed Ariel with Snowy, and the trio became part of the crowd surrounded the rather large man who was wolfing down hotdogs. "What's he on now?" "87" "He hasn't slowed?" "Looks like he's just gettin started" were some of the crowd comments. Ariel cheered the man on "Isn't this great?" she asked. Lucy felt sick watching this man stuff his face, just the thought of eating 100 hotdogs made her go sick.

She turned away and began walking away, Ariel jumped and followed her "Where are you going? Don't you wanna see this guy do it?" she asked. Lucy glanced back at the man still stuffing his face, gagged "Not really" she replied. Ariel waved back to the guy "Good luck Guy!" she yelled before turning and following Lucy and Snowy.

They headed towards the beach "How come you're not with Mr. Y?" Ariel asked curiously. Lucy shrugged "Mr. Y said he had work to do" she said. Ariel chuckled "Oh, he always has work to do! He needs to lighten up a little bit! Let's go visit him!" "No! No I think it'll be just fine if we don't!". They continued bickering about it when suddenly Lucy glanced behind her "Um, Ariel...?" she asked.

"Where is Snowy?" Lucy asked, her voice already beginning to rise in panic. How could she lose that pony? Ariel looked around "THERE!" she said, noticing the pony trotting in the opposite direction down the beach, towards the boardwalk. The two girls spun and began to pursue the pony, but as they gained, the little white mare began to run faster and faster. Ariel began puffing "Should we slow down?".

Their question was answered when Snowy skidded out onto the boardwalk, and then began heading towards the exit to the park, towards the streets. The girls sprinted faster, Lucy being able to run ahead of Ariel just a bit, but eventually they couldn't run anymore, and Snowy dove out into the streets, disappearing around a corner. The two girls stared at each other, their eyes wide as they walked to the gate Snowy had disappeared out of.

Lucy knew that she couldn't just let Snowy run around lose, but go out into the city? Ariel swallowed before taking Lucy's hand "Come on, if we hurry, we can catch her and bring her home before Daddy or Mr. Y notices!" she said. Lucy nodded and the two girls headed out into the big city, Ariel had to be right, they'd find her and get right home! They had to!

* * *

><p><strong>Surprise! I've been working on this forever, and I knew I needed to get it out there! That's why the ending is a little weird, it was rushed, quick thinking. Anyway, I don't really have much to say, other than you'll be waiting quite a while for the next chapter. I've been very busy with school and being in the school's musical. I expect to be writing regularly after March 18th, after the play is over.<strong>

**My other plan is to write a fanfiction based on my character in the play. This will hopefully get me better into my character for the musical, and help me get back into writing and out of my writers block. In case you're curious, we're doing Beauty and the Beast. There's actually a kind of summary called 'I am' that I wrote up. So, if you're really dying, keep your eyes out for that fic!  
><strong>

**Thank you very much for reading! As always please review! And be patient, the next chapter WILL come, just, just give it some time!**


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